Stefano Chessa Altieri

Stefano Chessa Altieri is a PhD candidate in Global History at the SSM (Italy) and at SciencesPo (France) under the supervision of Mario Del Pero. His doctoral research titled Rethinking Beijing. The Awakening of U.S. Congress in the Making of Post-Cold War China Policy (1989-1994) delves into the intricacies of post-Cold War U.S. foreign policy formulation towards China in the aftermath of the Tiananmen crackdown in June 1989. Specifically, it explores the nuanced dilemma confronting policymakers while struggling to balance considerations of economic integration with the promotion of human rights. Building on his MSc thesis, which critically reassessed the historiographical narrative of inconsistency between Jimmy Carter’s unprecedented human rights rhetoric and the formal opening of diplomatic relations with China in 1979, Stefano graduated with distinction from LSE under the supervision of Steven Casey. At SciencesPo, Stefano served as a teaching assistant of course on global history and transatlantic relations and co-convened the annual LSE-SciencesPo Seminar in International History. He also spent visiting semesters at American University and Columbia. Prior to joining the Research School, Stefano completed an IR Master’s double degree at SciencesPo and Fudan University (China).