Dr Kathryn Nwajiaku-Dahou is a British-Nigerian political scientist poet and writer. With over 30 years’ experience of conducting and managing  research and providing policy advice to governments, multilateral institutions and NGOs, in North America, Europe and Africa where she has lived and worked, she is a firm believer in the power of arts and culture to shape social and political change.

She is currently Director of  Politics and Governance at ODI Global, a UK based global affairs think tank, where she leads a team of political economists working on governance, democracy, peace and security, digital societal transformation , human rights and access to justice questions. As a member of ODI Global’s  Leadership Team, Kathryn has led the organisation’s strategic mission to decolonise the production of knowledge, build just and equitable partnerships with Global South institutions and integrate narrative and culture strategy into its work to shape public imaginations and increase policy uptake. Multilingual (speaking Igbo, some Wolof, Nigerian Pidgin, some Spanish and fluent in French), Kathryn is the founder and host of the Paris-based Black Arts forum (Salon in My Salon) which since 2022, has provided a supportive in-person platform for writers, poets and all creatives of African descent to share emergent work.

With a BA in History and French (University of East Anglia), an  MA in Area Studies (Africa) from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, Kathryn also has a PhD in Politics and International Relations from Oxford University, Nuffield College (2005), where she also held two postdoctoral fellowships (2005-2006 and 2009-2012). Her doctoral and postdoctoral research on the politics of identity, citizenship,  belonging, the forging of political community and the politics of oil and gas extraction, has been the subject of extensive publications and policy work. Between 2019-2024, Kathryn chaired the scientific committee of an international Commission of Inquiry into oil and gas pollution in Nigeria’s Niger Delta and today is widely acknowledged as an expert on environmental justice and corporate accountability.