Aoife is currently a Research Associate with the Global Risks and Resilience programme. Her core area of expertise lies in political economy and social analysis in conflict-affected environments. She has used these skills to lead conflict and governance analyses in Niger, Mali, South Sudan, Pakistan and Liberia for donors and NGOs. Her analysis has been used by DFID and USAID to inform multi-million governance programmes, and by NGOs such as the Norwegian Refugee Council to inform humanitarian interventions.

While a Research Fellow with ODI's Politics and Governance programme, Aoife led a multi-country series of case studies exploring the link between service delivery and state legitimacy as part of the Secure Livelihoods Research Consortium. She is currently a PhD candidate at the London School of Economics, focusing on the presence of foreign militaries and state legitimacy in Niger. She holds an MSc in Anthropology and Development from the London School of Economics and a BA in Psychology from Trinity College Dublin.