Mariela is Postdoctoral Researcher at SKOPE carrying out research for the Nuffield Project, ‘Comparing UK policies, outcomes and inequalities in post-16 education & training.’ Her research interests encompass identity and wellbeing theories, in particular the recognition theory and the Capability Approach, children’s rights and the ethics of care. She takes a multi-disciplinary approach in research, drawing on theories in sociology, psychology, human rights and political science to explore what makes a good life, particularly for young people, in contemporary society.
She holds a doctorate in Social Sciences and a Master’s in International Human Rights Law from New College, University of Oxford. Prior to joining SKOPE, she conducted evaluation research for the Rees Centre, research in social care for the Department of Social Policy and Intervention, and provided policy advice and conducted research with young people in refugee camps for the AMAR Foundation.
She is a former Head of the National Authority for Children’s Rights in Romania (2007-2009) and former Policy Officer for the office of the European Commission in Romania where she was responsible for the EU intervention to reform the child protection system in Romania (1999 – 2006). Mariela is founding member of the Oxford Children’s Rights Network.
She is the author of ‘Voices from the Silent Cradles’ (Policy Press, 2021), a book which sheds light on children’s homes, foster care, domestic and international adoption from the perspective of the young people who experienced these types of care and which has been reviewed as complementing Sir Michael Rutter’s longitudinal study of Romanian born adoptees. Her work has been published in The International Journal of Law, Policy and the Family, the British Journal of Social Work and Children and Youth Services Review. Her article ‘Children by Request: Romania’s children between rights and international politics’ has been cited in John Tobin’s ‘The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child: A Commentary’ (OUP, 2019) and in the 2017 report of the UN Rapporteur on the Sale and Exploitation of Children.
Visit Mariela’s website: https://marielaneagu.com
