Maj Nygaard-Christensen holds a PhD in anthropology and has carried out fieldwork in Timor-Leste over more than a decade. She is particularly interested in policy processes and the (unintended) effects of development interventions. Among others, this has led to the completion of a post-doctoral project on democracy promotion practices in Timor-Leste, and the near-completion of a book manuscript that examines the humanitarian intervention in the country as a political and material presence. She is currently employed at the Centre for Alcohol and Drug Research at Aarhus University.