Dorte Thorsen is a Research Fellow in the Livelihoods, Health and Crises Department. As a qualitative social scientist, her research focuses on livelihoods, youth transitions, gender, education and work, social inclusion, and development policy, particularly in West Africa. She combines ethnographic and mixed-methods research to explore how people navigate uncertainty, inequality and changing economic opportunities. Her recent work includes research on vocational education and training, mobilities, food systems, and inclusive livelihood pathways.
Dorte has 25+ years’ experience in conducting research with marginalised people in West Africa. She is particularly interested in how young people and marginalised groups build livelihoods, exercise agency and negotiate access to opportunities in contexts characterised by economic and social change. Her research combines ethnographic approaches with policy-oriented analysis to generate evidence that can inform more equitable and inclusive development policies and programmes.
At IDS, Dorte leads and contributes to collaborative international research projects, working closely with academic partners, policymakers, NGOs and donor organisations. Current research leadership includes PAVTIL, a comparative longitudinal study of vocational training, informal learning and future-making among young people in Benin, Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, and TVET Pathways in Côte d’Ivoire, a Spencer Foundation-funded project examining the consequences of educational privatisation and expanding school-based TVET for young people’s aspirations, educational decision-making and transitions into work. Together, these projects contribute to broader debates on skills development, youth transitions, social mobility and the relationship between education and livelihood trajectories in West Africa. Her recent work also includes research on food systems, agricultural value chains, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and pathways to more inclusive and resilient rural economies in West Africa, and conceptual work for more youth inclusive practices in agrifood systems research and programming.
Teaching and PhD supervision
Alongside her research, Dorte is actively engaged in teaching and postgraduate supervision. She co-convenes and teaches on modules addressing gender, identity and inclusion in development, and power and inequality.
Dorte has supervised the PhD of Dr Rosalind Willi who explored Syrian-Armenian children’s sense of return migration and wellbeing in Armenia. She currently supervises two Postgraduate Researchers: Cassie Biggs (co-supervised by Pamela Kea, Global Studies, University of Sussex) who is researching masculinities among teachers in Malawi, and Charity Dandak (co-supervised by Hayley McGregor and Mary Wickenden) who is researching the experience and wellbeing of mothers raising children with special needs in Nigeria.
Dorte will consider PhD applications from applicants, who reach out with a CV and a concept note for their proposed research (1-2 pages written without the use of artificial intelligence). Admission requirements and potential funding sources can be found on IDS’ web page.
