Elena Zhang

Graduate Student
MA Cohort 2018

Specialization

Corporate Social Responsibility, Benefit Corporation, Impact Investing, Private governance, Sustainable Development, Global Political Economy, and Global Governance

Bio

Elena is currently an MA student in Global Studies at UC Santa Barbara. Prior to joining the program, Elena obtained her first Master degree in International Project Management from l’Université Sorbonne Nouvelle - Paris III. She then worked at Continental AG for six months as a corporate communication intern in charge of both internal and external communication of Broadcast Reception & Services Center of Competences - an international multidisciplinary Research & Development center based in the Paris region. This opportunity has greatly fostered her knowledge and skills in project management and communication in a multinational corporation. 
 
Elena is fluently trilingual in Chinese, French, and English, and brings with her an extensive background in cross-cultural communication and cooperation. She also speaks basic conversational Spanish and is taking German language course at UCSB. To her, foreign languages are the gateway to a deeper and impartial understanding of global cultures and transnational issues.

Research

Elena’s research mainly revolves around a global regime of corporate social responsibilities beyond private corporate function, the role of financial markets related to social and environmental issues, and sustainable development from a global perspective. Adopting a multidisciplinary approach, she is particularly interested in the engagement between business and civil society, the link between capitalism and social progress, as well as the interface between private and public interest. 

Courses

Teaching Assistant (F’18): GLOBL 1 - Global History, Culture and Ideology
Teaching Assistant (W’19): GLOBL 2 - Global Socioeconomic and Political Processes
Teaching Assistant (S’19): GLOBL 172 - International Organizations and Global Governance