Deviana W. Dewi

I am the Dr. Feizal Waffarn Fellow 2026–2027, a Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California (UC) Irvine, under the UC President’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program. I received my Ph.D. in International Development from Johns Hopkins University in May 2026. I hold degrees from the University of Sussex, UK (MA in Development Studies) and Universitas Katolik Parahyangan, Indonesia (BA in International Relations).

As a social scientist in the political economy of health and nutrition, my research interests lie at the intersection of health policy and political science. I use mixed methods, drawing on empirical analysis of primary and secondary data, both qualitative and quantitative, across settings and scales — national and subnational contexts in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), primarily Southeast Asia, as well as the United States and global institutions. Driven by a commitment to human security and equity, I am particularly interested in how political processes, incentives, and power shape health and nutrition policy and outcomes. Supported financially by the American Association of University Women (AAUW), my dissertation traced this question through Indonesia’s stunting reduction policy 2018-2024, and my current work extends it to the national and global levels. My passion for global health and development is coupled with a healthy degree of skepticism about how it works in practice, and an ongoing effort to unpick my own assumptions.

As a first-generation college scholar, I know firsthand the transformative role of education and mentorship, and I aspire to give back the intellectual generosity I received from my teachers and mentors. Before my doctoral studies, I spent eight years in nutrition and social development, from the grassroots level with World Vision Indonesia to the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Institute of Development Studies. My interest in early-years nutrition is rooted in the belief that if we change the beginning of a story, we can change the whole story. Outside of office, I enjoy flat whites, hot yoga, hiking, mentoring, reading, journaling, and swimming.

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