Willow F Williamson’s research in international communication focuses on women’s empowerment, technology, and entrepreneurship. Her dissertation research examines the role of women, information and communication technology, and entrepreneurship in US foreign policy in the GCC and Jordan. She conducted her fieldwork in the GCC and Jordan in 2015-2017, including over 90 interviews with US officials, women participants in US funded exchange programs, and other stakeholders in the entrepreneurship ecosystem. Her findings center on women participant interaction with the US discursive formation of women’s empowerment. Williamson has published book chapters on intercultural competence, creativity and improvisation in diplomacy, as well as a co-written paper on teaching Public Diplomacy. Her interest in entrepreneurship and international relations originated from her collaborations in international music and film projects, as well as her work as an entrepreneur in technology. She has scored award winning films, produced albums, and performed as a multimedia artist.Williamson has an MA in International Media from AU, an MFA in Composition and New Media from California Institute of the Arts, and a BA in Electronic Music Composition from Mills College. After receiving her PhD, she has accepted a position in the Foreign Service of the US Department of State.
Awards:
Boren Graduate Fellowship, National Security Education Program, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 2015
STAIR Working Group “Worldviews in Science, Technology and Art in International Relations,” ISA Annual Convention, 2015
Milton Wolf Seminar, Emerging Scholar, Vienna, Austria, 2014
DACOR Bacon House Foundation Fellowship, 2011-12
Research grant from the School of International Service, American University, Mobile Usage and Women in Senegal, 2011
Education and Development Fund, Intercultural Management Institute Conference, Scholarship Recipient, 2011
Graduate Fellowship, New Media Center, Center for Teaching, Research and Learning, American University, 2010-11
Winner of Meet the Composer, Global Connections Grant, 2007
Publications:
2018: “Creativity as a Worldview: Power in Collaborative Practices" in Singh JP, Renée Marlin-Bennett, and Carr, M (eds), Worldviews in Science, Technology, and the Arts in International Relations, Routledge.
2014: “Opening up Thinking Space for Improvised Collaborative Public Diplomacy.” In Rebekah Ahrendt et al (Eds), Music and Diplomacy, Palgrave Macmillan.
2013: “Digital Media Literacy and Intercultural Competence: Finding Convergence to Increase Civic Engagement.” In Eliza J. Nash, Nevin C. Brown, and Lavinia Bracci (Eds.), Intercultural Horizons: Intercultural Strategies in Civic Engagement (pp. 135-153). Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
2012: with Kelley, J. R. “# Kelleypd: Public Diplomacy 2.0 Classroom.” Global Media Journal-American Edition, 11(21).
