During her time at CERES, Michelle Hanssen has aimed to take full advantage of the interdisciplinary nature of area studies, and the integral context it provides when studying emerging issues in social justice and global security. Namely, she focuses on instances of conflict and cooperation around issues of energy and the environment in the post-Soviet space – specifically Central Asia and the Arctic – as well as the tangible and intangible consequences emerging from the lived, perceived, and predicted effects of climate change.