Dr. Marufa Akter is an assistant professor at the Department of Global Studies & Governance (GSG) Program in Independent University, Bangladesh. She holds a doctorate in political science from the University of Bremen, and a master’s degree in public policy from Willy Brandt School of Public Policy, University of Erfurt, Germany, under DAAD scholarship. She also holds a Bachelor and a Master of Social Sciences degree in International Relations from University of Dhaka. She has attended a one-year graduate course on peace building and conflict transformation at the SIT Graduate Institute in Vermont, USA. She works in the areas of gender and politics; governance; women, peace and security; nontraditional security issues; conflict resolution and peace building.