Chiara Cozzatella

Chiara is a historian and African studies graduate from Rome, Italy, where she was born in 2000. With a background in humanities and a strong passion for understanding the interconnections of our world, she completed a Bachelor's in History at the University of Bologna in 2022. There, she focused on the contemporary history of Africa with a sociopolitical and economic perspective, giving specific attention to economic history, labor history, and women's history.

After completing her historical studies, Chiara decided to pursue her interest in the African continent by embarking on a Master’s in African Studies at Leiden University in the Netherlands. This was an opportunity for her to conduct research on migration issues, a longstanding interest of hers. Consequently, Chiara undertook a fieldwork research project in Gaborone, Botswana, where she focused on migratory flows and dynamics from Zimbabwe to Botswana. She studied the economic and sociopolitical implications of these flows in depth. Using a mixed-methods research approach, she investigated the economic contributions of migrants in Botswana, their legal status, and related integration dynamics. With this study, Chiara chose to use historical research to contextualize and explain contemporary issues and dynamics, focusing specifically on South-South migration to challenge the more common narratives about migratory flows around the world.

Chiara’s work experience includes archival work at UDI Bologna and collaborations with both academic and non-academic institutions. She completed an internship at DITSHWANELO - The Botswana Centre for Human Rights at the beginning of 2023 and recently finished a fellowship in political economy at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. She is currently working on research projects related to migration issues and hopes to start a PhD in 2024.

Her areas of expertise include:

• African Studies

• Migration Studies

• History of Labor and Women