Meet Our Research Team

Each Photo Takes You to Their LinkedIn Profile When Clicked

Research Associate

Amaya Gaines

Doctoral Student, Cornell University (Brooks School)

Program: Doctorate of Public Policy (PhD)

Project To Be Announced

Amaya M. Gaines is a fourth-year doctoral student at Cornell University's Brooks School of Public Policy, with a disciplinary emphasis on Government. Broadly, her research examines American politics, public policy, and political economy, with attention to how the politics of public policy shape market inequalities along the lines of race, gender, and class. Her work explores how Americans make sense of politics through identity and lived experience, including economic precarity and inequality, and how these interpretations inform policy preferences, attitudes toward government, and perceptions of democratic responsiveness. She uses mixed-methods research, primarily combining survey research and qualitative analysis, to better understand policy problems and their implications for governance. Amaya is committed to producing research that is accessible and engages both within and beyond academia.

Research Associate

Allison Labutin

Master's Candidate, King's College London

Program: International Relations

The Trust Deficit: Economic Interdependence, Populism, and the Crisis of Democratic Legitimacy

Allison is a recent graduate of Virginia Tech, where she earned a B.A. in International Relations with a minor in Economics. Beginning in Fall 2026, she will pursue a masters degree in International Political Economy at King's College London. Her research interests include political economy, democratic resilience, institutional trust, and the intersection of economic and security dynamics. Since Fall 2025, she has conducted research with RRI and has also contributed to research initiatives at the Virginia Tech Hume Center for National Security and Technology.

Junior Research Associate

Marianna Ruggiero

Sophomore, Cornell University

Program: Government and Information Science

Media Propaganda: How the Media Shapes the Public’s Demographic Perception

Marianna is a sophomore at Cornell University majoring in Government and Information Science. She has interned as a Data Capacity Fellow for SEIU contributing to efforts of inclusive and effective canvassing. During her internship at RRI she worked on The Great Realignment Project, authoring a chapter that investigates the historical and modern ideologies held by the Hispanic electorate. Born in Venezuela, she is passionate about minority advocacy and inclusive policy.

Junior Research Associate

Varun Raju

Sophomore, Florida State University

Program: Political Science & Economics

A Broken Compass: Bias, Artificial Intelligence, and Misdirection in National Security

Varun is a second-year student at Florida State University, studying Political Science and Economics with a U.S. Intelligence Certificate. His research experience has spanned juvenile recidivism, Mexican judicial reforms, and most recently—RRI's Citizenship Empowerment Framework Activation Guide. He will begin his Honors Thesis on AI in national security this Spring. Varun aims to explore the intersection of national security, emerging technologies, and civil liberties.