Department of Political Science

2060 Jenkins Nanovic Halls
Notre Dame, IN, 46556
Email: wkakenma@nd.edu

About Me

Welcome! I am a PhD Candidate in the Department of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame and a PhD Fellow at the Kellogg Institute for International Studies, where I specialize in comparative politics and political methodology.

I work mainly on the politics of climate change and the environment. My dissertation examines the political economy of decarbonization in authoritarian regimes using a mixed-methods research design and original interviews with energy transition stakeholders in Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia. In a related project, I analyze the effects of fossil fuel wealth and executive constraints on greenhouse gas emissions in authoritarian regimes, while other projects explore questions related to climate change adaptation.

My research has been published in Climate Policy, Global Environmental Politics, Perspectives on Politics, Millennium: Journal of International Studies, and Nature Climate Change. My teaching experience includes undergraduate and graduate courses on comparative politics, global environmental politics, linear regression, and sustainability.

Like many scholars of the environment, I love nature, being outdoors, gardening, and leading an active lifestyle. Don't be shy about getting in touch!

I recognize my presence on the traditional land of Native peoples, including the Pokagon Potawatomi (Pokégnek Bodéwadmik) and other first nations. These lands were the traditional territory of these peoples and continues to carry the stories of their struggles for survival and identity. I honor with gratitude the land itself and those who have stewarded it throughout the generations and continue to do so.