Photography from Research Locations — Katherine Kjellström Elgin, Ph.D.

When not researching or writing, I can often be found behind a camera. One of my great joys is capturing moments of everyday life in the locations to which I travel for research and other learning opportunities. I am incredibly lucky to be able to travel to often magnificent places to conduct my work. Much of my full photography can be found at my photography website; here, I present photographs collected from academic trips.

Stockholm, Sweden, Fall 2018

During the autumn of 2019, I served as a visiting research at the Institute for Security & Development Policy, pursuing research for my dissertation. The trip was supported by the Lynne and Harry Bradley Foundation.

Belgium, June 2018

After presenting a paper about geopolitics in Central Asia at a BACES-UNU workshop in Brugges, I traveled to Brussels to conduct research interviews with officials at NATO. The trip was sponsored by the Lynne and Harry Bradley Foundation.

Spain, March 2018

During Princeton University's 2018 spring break, the Center for International Security Studies traveled to Spain to study the Spanish Civil War. The group travelled from Madrid to San Sebastian, to Barcelona to study major aspects of the war, including international intervention, the role of the media, and political identities. It was the first time a CISS staff ride examined a civil war in depth.

Vienna, November 2017

Just after Thanksgiving, as the Christmas season was revving up, I attended a conference with the Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination in Vienna. I had only been to the city once before, for just 24 hours. This time, a quick work trip allowed me multiple days around the edges of the conference to explore Vienna in all its Christmas glory.

Israel, June 2017

This trip, with the Center for International Security Studies, provided my first visit to Israel. In addition to interviews with academics and policymakers in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, we conducted a staff ride throughout the country.

Jaffa. Tel Aviv, Israel. June 2017.

Tel Fah'er, Israel. June 2017.

Tel Fah'er is a former Syrian outpost in the Golan Heights that has since the Six-Day War been under Israeli sovereignty.

Mount Avital, Israel. June 2017.

On Mount Avital, we were able to converse with two UN Peacekeepers there with UNDOF, an observation force that has been in place since the Yom Kippur War to monitor peace between Syria and Israel.

Castel National Park, Israel. June 2017.

Castel National Park is the location of fierce battles to control the site during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. The hill overlooks the main highway connecting Jerusalem with Tel Aviv and the north.

Jerusalem, Israel. June 2017.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Jerusalem, Israel. June 2017.

Jerusalem, Israel. June 2017.

Germany and Belgium, March 2017

Another trip with the Center for International Security Studies, my co-director and I led a staff ride of the Cold War. We started in Berlin to discuss the background to the US-USSR rivalry and political and economic competition, continued to the Fulda Gap to discuss military preparations for war on the European continent, visited a former government bunker in Bonn to discuss themes of nuclear war, and finished in Brussels to discuss the history and future of the NATO alliance.

Brandenburg Gate. Berlin, Germany. March 2017.

Soviet War Memorial. Berlin, Germany. March 2017.

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. Berlin, Germany. March 2017.

Berlin-Hohenschönhausen Memorial. Berlin, Germany. March 2017.

Berlin-Hohenschönhausen Memorial has preserved a former Stasi political prison.There was a green light system to ensure that as guards walked prisoners to and from interrogation rooms and other locations, they would not run into other prisoners. Solitude was key.

Point Alpha Memorial. Rasdorf, Germany. March 2017.

Regierungsbunker. Bonn, Germany. March 2017.

Our penultimate stop was in Bonn, the location of one of the West German government's nuclear bunkers.

Brussels, Belgium. March 2017.

Ghent, Belgium. March 2017.

Kyrgyzstan, June 2016

This initial research trip to Kyrgyzstan allowed me to gain a deeper understanding of the interaction of Chinese and Russian policies in Central Asia. The trip was graciously made possible by the Center for International Security Studies and the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies. You can read more about my trip here.

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. June 2016.

Behind the National Museum in Bishkek stands the last standing major statue of Lenin – just one remnant of the country's Soviet history.

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. June 2016.

Ala-Too Square is the main square in the capital city.

Bel-Tam Yurt Camp. Bokonbayevo, Kyrgyzstan. June 2016.

Lake Issyk-Kul is the second largest saline lake (by volume) in the world and the tenth largest lake of any kind.

Bel-Tam Yurt Camp. Bokonbayevo, Kyrgyzstan. June 2016.

Burana Tower. Tokmok, Kyrgyzstan. June 2016.

On the way back from Bokonbayevo, we stopped at Burana Tower, the remains of a minaret from the town of Balasagun. Founded in the ninth century, the town was an important marker along the Silk Road.

Osh Bazaar. Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. June 2016.

Ala-Too Square. Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. June 2016.

Normandy, France, March 2016

In a staff ride with members of the Center for International Security Studies community to Normandy, France, we explored themes of tactics, innovation, civil-military relations, leadership, hydrography, and more as they applied to Normandy's Operation Overlord and beyond.

Pointe du Hoc. Normandy, France. March 2016.

Normandy American Cemetery. Normandy, France. March 2016.

Utah Beach. Normandy, France. March 2016.

Mont Saint Michel, France. March 2016.

Paris, France. March 2016.

Abu Dhabi, April 2015

While I worked at the Brookings Institution, we co-hosted with NYU Abu Dhabi a conference in the Emirates addressing large global and regional themes. Staffing the conference, I was able to spend a weekend in Abu Dhabi exploring the city.