Email: chawil@prio.org
Hi! My work centers on two main themes:
1️⃣ The impact of war on civilians: I study when and why homes, infrastructure, and cultural heritage are targeted and develop satellite-based methods to monitor violence that is hard to observe from the ground.
2️⃣ Satellites for Peace: I am interested in how satellite evidence across research, policy, and practice can support conflict prevention, civilian protection, peacebuilding, and recovery.
Please connect if these areas align with your interests!
My research is focuses on: civilian victimization, wartime destruction, and attacks of cultural heritage. Additionally, I've spent time researching Kosovo and plan to do more moving forward.
Prior to my PhD, I held a position as a research assistant with the VIEWS and ANTICIPATE project led by Håvard Hegre. I received my academic training from the University of Oslo, where I received a Master of Philosophy in Peace and Conflict Studies. During my master's, I wrote my thesis, “Airstrike-only Military Interventions and their Civilian Consequences,” in affiliation with PRIO through its UiO-PRIO Student Programme.
If any of my interests align with yours, please reach out!
Experience
Present – Doctoral Researcher, PRIO, ANTICIPATE
Present – Eisenhower PhD Candidate Fellow, NATO Defense College
2024 – Fulbright Research Fellow, Kosovo
2021 – 2023 Research Assistant, PRIO, VIEWS
2022 – 2023 Affiliated Researcher, Centre for Advance Study
2021 – 2022 Research Assistant, UiO, ELDAR/PODS
2017 – 2019 Educator, Peace Corps, Kosovo
2016 Intern, U.S. Department of State, Chengdu, China
2015 Congressional Intern, U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C.
2014 Congressional Intern, U.S. Senator Bill Nelson, Jacksonville, FL
Education
2020 – 2022 MPhil in Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Oslo
2012 – 2016 BA in International Relations, University of North Florida
Languages
English, Albanian
Book chapter in The Scale, Adjudication, and Documentation of Crimes Committed During the War in Kosovo
Popular article in Aftenposten
Master thesis
The idea that satellites can help build peace is no longer a distant vision. In July, PRIO convened leading voices from the humanitarian, diplomatic, scientific and space communities for the conference "Satellites for Peace: An idea whose time has come".
The Violence and Impacts Early-Warning System (VIEWS) team is committed to providing humanitarian groups with the earliest possible warnings to support anticipatory action.
Chandler Williams has successfully defended his thesis "Airstrike-only Military Interventions and Their Civilian Consequences - Evidence from the Kosovo War".
