Marlene Spoerri is a policy advisor at Independent Diplomat and the author of Engineering Revolution: The Paradox of Democracy Promotion in Serbia. She was formerly the host of Carnegie Council's Ethics Matter Series and contributed to the Council's podcast Global Ethics Corner. Prior to joining the Council, Spoerri worked for the German Marshall Fund of the United States, the U.S. Embassy in Croatia, and the Humanitarian Law Center. A dual Dutch-American citizen, she speaks English, Dutch, and Serbian. In November 2012, Spoerri defended her Ph.D. in European studies at the University of Amsterdam. In addition to teaching about democracy and international relations, she has served as a visiting scholar at Columbia University’s Harriman Institute and Central European University's Department of Political Science.
Her articles have appeared in peer-reviewed journals, including Democratization, Europe-Asia Studies, the Journal of International Relations and Development, as well as in news outlets like the Christian Science Monitor.
In recognition of her research, she has received fellowships, awards and stipends from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Association for the Study of Nationalities and Harvard’s Kokkalis Program on Southeast and Eastern Europe.
Featured Work
JUN 13, 2013 • Podcast
Ethics Matter: Jeremy Scahill on the World as a Battlefield
In the name of the "war on terror," the U.S. is conducting covert warfare and targeted killings, and it dismisses the resulting deaths of ...
APR 9, 2013 • Podcast
Ethics Matter: Zainab Salbi on Women, War, and Self-Empowerment
In this fascinating conversation, Zainab Salbi discusses her personal journey from growing up in Saddam Hussein's Iraq to becoming a global champion of women's rights. ...
MAR 8, 2013 • Podcast
Ethics Matter: A Conversation on Bioethics with NASA's Paul Root Wolpe
In this eye-opening conversation, renowned bioethicist Dr. Wolpe grapples with the ethical issues raised by advances in biotechnology and neuroscience, including "brain fingerprinting" and eventual ...
DEC 11, 2012 • Podcast
Ethics Matter: Srdja Popovic on Creating Successful Nonviolent Movements
Successful nonviolent movements need three things: the cool factor, memorable branding, and humor, says Popovic. He cofounded the Serbian youth movement Otpor!, which played a ...
NOV 20, 2012 • Podcast
Ethics Matter: Dan Ariely on the Hidden Forces that Shape our Decisions
Why do smart people cheat? Why do we eat more than we should or text while driving? In this funny and insightful talk, behavioral economist ...
OCT 15, 2012 • Podcast
Ethics Matter: Environmentalist Bill McKibben on Climate Change
McKibben, one of the world's leading environmentalist, believes our best hope lies not in appealing to our wallets, but in appealing to our ethics, our ...
MAR 21, 2012 • Article
Europe's Far Right Goes Mainstream: The Failure of Multiculturalism?
What explains the far right's resurgence across Europe? Despite the perceived failures of multiculturalism, the continent should do more to understand why xenophobia remains so ...
FEB 13, 2012 • Article
Why Are We Surprised at Egypt's Backlash against Foreign NGOs?
The outrage over Egypt's arrest of 43 NGO workers, at least 16 of whom are American, is understandable and well deserved. But it also speaks to a ...
FEB 1, 2012 • Podcast
A Look at Income Inequality in the United States
Hedge fund manager Philippe Burke gives us an inside look at what went wrong with the financial system and explains why he supports Occupy Wall ...
JUN 2, 2011 • Article
The Ethics of a Justice Imposed: Ratko Mladic's Arrest and the Costs of Conditionality
For Serbians, material incentives, not a moral imperative, are the main motivation for compliance with the International Criminal Tribunal. Thus Serbia has succeeded in aspects ...