United Nations University Centre for Policy Research is delighted to welcome two new researchers to our team.
Cristal Downing is Colombia Case Study Manager at United Nations University Centre for Policy Research on the Managing Exits from Armed Conflict project.
Prior to joining UNU-CPR, Ms Downing was Senior Policy Adviser at the Permanent Mission of the United Kingdom to the United Nations. She held a Security Council portfolio that included Colombia, Venezuela, and Women, Peace and Security, leading and representing the UK in Security Council processes including the drafting and negotiation of resolutions and other products, as well as delivering strategic policy advice and support within the Mission and across the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. She was an Analyst in the Disarmament, Demobilisation, and Reintegration programme of the International Organisation for Migration in Colombia, providing research and policy input to the government peace process with the FARC-EP and supporting DDR programming.
Sophie Huvé is a Legal Expert at UNU-CPR on the Sanctions and International Humanitarian Law project.
Ms Huvé joins from the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva, where she worked as a legal associate and adviser on international humanitarian law, notably on the impact of sanctions regimes and counterterrorism measures on humanitarian action. She was previously a fellow with the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security, where she worked and published a report on the use of UN sanctions to prevent conflict-related sexual violence. She interned with the UN's Sanctions Branch and has also published a book on Russia's foreign policy at the UN.