Danish Institute for International Studies
Partner No. 14: Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS)
The Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS) is an independent research institution engaged in research in international affairs. The institute draws up reports and analyses and follows developments in international affairs continuously in order to assess the security and foreign policy situation of Denmark, e.g. aspects of relevance with regard to development policy. DIIS also communicates research findings, analyses and knowledge and performs functions concerning documentation, information and library services. Furthermore, DIIS contributes to the education of researchers, supports the development of research capacity in developing countries and establishes contacts between Danish and international research environments.
DIIS’s research and activities are organized in several research units and a few major commissioned works. The research unit involved in the SEAT-project is ‘Global Economy, Regulation and Development’ (GEARED). The unit builds on the previous work of the research unit on ‘Trade and Development’ to explore development issues in the broader setting of current trends and transformations in the global economy.
Of particular interest to their research agenda are the prospects of re-regulation at the global, regional and national levels – in the context of various crises (food, energy, and financial/economic) that have affected the global economy and developing countries the past few years. Specific focus is on the role that standards (on products, practices, corporate organization and policy) may be playing in such re-regulation.
| Dr. Stefano Ponte has been senior researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS) since 2003. His thematic specialization is on international trade, agro-food standards, global value chain analysis and economic development and he has more than 10 years of research experience in low-income countries, mainly Africa. He has a PhD in Development Studies from the University of East Anglia and has published 20 articles in peer-reviewed journals, 3 books and a large number of other publications. Before joining DIIS, he was researcher at the Centre for Development Research (Copenhagen). He has been visiting lecturer at the University of North Carolina, Duke University, and the University of Copenhagen, as well as guest researcher at universities in Tanzania, Uganda, and South Africa. |  |
| Kaspar Nielsen joined the Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS) as PhD Candidate in November 2009. He will both be attached to the DIIS research unit ‘Global Economy, Regulation and Development’ (GEARED) and to International Development Studies at Roskilde University. In the SEAT-project he will deliver expertise on the global value chain framework and analyze value chains for selected species in Southeast Asia. Previously he has worked three years as project coordinator for Enterprise Europe Network – The European Commissions official network for supporting SMEs. The work included business cooperation, transnational technology transfer and individual on-site visits to companies to assess their needs. Besides being experienced in business support he holds an MSc in International Development and Business Studies from Roskilde University, Denmark. |  |
