Welcome! I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Politics at Princeton University, where I study international relations theory.  My research focuses on alternative configurations of authority in international politics. My dissertation examines cases of internationalized territories as an exceptional arrangement of sovereignty, illustrating how conceptions of territoriality and international claims to authority have evolved over time. My research has involved archival work in New York, Geneva, and London, as well as interdisciplinary engagement in the fields of political theory and history. I am grateful to be advised by G. John Ikenberry, Melissa M. Lee, and Jamie Martin.

This year, I am a Hans J. Morgenthau Fellow at the University of Notre Dame’s International Security Center, a Graduate Fellow at the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies, and a Graduate Fellow at the Reimagining World Order research community.

In June of 2024 I organized the “Pluralism, Polarity, and Problems of International Authority” conference at Princeton. I have assisted in teaching undergraduate courses on international relations and grand strategy at Princeton, for which I received the George Kateb Preceptor Award, and have also taught the graduate course “Inside the Situation Room” at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs.

My c.v. can be viewed here. Contact me at penatzer@princeton.edu.