Ioanna Giakoumopoulou

Ioanna Giakoumopoulou holds a first-class BSc in International Relations with History from the London School of Economics and Political Sciences and an MSc in Southeast European Studies with distinction from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.

Her academic research has focused on the interplay between the now common illiberal script and anti-gender ideology in post-communist societies, analysing the re-glorification of traditional gender and family roles in the Balkan region. Her MSc thesis presented a comparative study of Serbia, Croatia, and Romania to explore the mutually enabling feedback loop of religion, heteronormativity, and nuclear family values with the resilience of illiberal rhetoric.

At the Wider Europe Programme, her research experience expands to a deeper focus on extremism and radicalisation, particularly online, as well as an analysis of Euroscepticism in Southeast Europe. These include primary and ethnographic field work under the Horizon Europe – funded GEMS project and a series of citizen assemblies spanning Greece under the CERV-funded REACH project.

Additionally, she has gained professional experience abroad, including roles at University College London, NGOs such as Minority Rights Group International, as well as institutions, including the Council of Europe and UNHCR.

She speaks English, French, and Spanish.