In 2012 Silvia graduated from the Faculty of International and Diplomatic

Sciences, University of Bologna, where she gained a major in Theories of

International Relations. Along with her interest in the IR discipline, she has

devoted much of her university program to the study of Sub-Saharan Africa’s

history, political institutions, international relations, and economic development.

In 2009, indeed, by working as a coordinator Silvia took part in an international

cooperation project sponsored by Italian and Mozambican national authorities,

which was aimed at the promotion of agricultural, economic and social

development of a wide area in the Province of Manica, Mozambique. More

recently, she was an intern at the Italian Institute for Relations between Italy and

African, Latin American, and Middle Eastern Countries (IPALMO), working in

harness with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for relevant issues, initiatives

and projects concerning international and national politics, and international

cooperation. On that occasion, she had the chance to publish three papers:

«America Latina: dinamiche di cooperazione e competizione in campo strategico»

(2013); «La politica estera italiana nel nuovo contesto globale» (2013); «The

Decline of the West: in search of lost identity. New Strategies and Challenges

in an Era of Global Shifts», research paper prepared for the homonymous

international conference organized by IPALMO, Rome, November 20

Currently, Silvia is a second year student at the Johns Hopkins University –

School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), where she is attending a M.A.

in International Relations and Economics, with an IR/General concentration and a

focus on African affairs. Upon completion of her academic program at SAIS, Silvia

intends to pursue a professional career in the political-diplomatic sphere of her

home country.

Silvia’s contributions to the SAIS Observer focus on the broad dimension of

transatlantic relations, with particular reference to the military, political and

economic sphere. Blog posts are meant to shed light on the current phenomena

shaping the long-standing interactions across the two hemispheres, on the

way in which an increasingly complex international system affects process of

transatlantic cooperation and competition, on what can be reckoned as the

major challenges that the Alliance is likely to face in years to come, and on what

might be the direction and pace that the evolution of those relations are likely

to embark on. Through the lens of IR theories, and a distinctive approach to the

understanding and interpretation of events taken into consideration, blog posts

aim at bringing to the reader’s attention the most relevant aspects and underlying

tendencies characterizing the protean relations between Europe and the Unites

States. Power, interests, distribution of resources, process of alignment, and

politics of alliances are to constitute the fundamental components whereby both

critical analyses and genuine comments are proposed. Moreover, as far as those

key concepts are concerned, blog posts’ content encompasses the broader field

of international relations, international politics, and foreign policy, and delves into

the primary mechanisms and driving forces for interstate relations.