Dr Francesca Pusterla Piccin holds a PhD in political science from the University of Geneva and a Master of Arts in European Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies from the College of Europe. Presently, she serves as a senior research associate at the Free University of Bozen–Bolzano, developing a Horizon project on EU Humanitarian Aid with the support of the Autonomous Province of Bolzano/Bozen – South Tyrol. Her prior roles include serving as a Research Associate at the SOAS, University of London, and as a Visiting Researcher at St. Antony’s College of the University of Oxford, with funding from the Swiss National Science Foundation. Dr Pusterla Piccin’s research has a global focus, delving into the response of both the European Union and its member states to international migration and humanitarian crises. Her work involves comparing the policies of EU member states as they grapple with the pressing political challenge posed by the incoming international migrants at the EU borders. She grounds her research on the concepts of territorial sovereignty and state political fragility to theoretically analyse this challenge, highlighting the moral and political dilemma between state authority and a coordinated EU-level response to international humanitarian crises. Dr Pusterla Piccin has recently secured Horizon funding to further develop her research, with implications at both national and international levels. The research investigates the European Union’s narratives as persuasive stories and accounts constructed and deployed to communicate its understanding of humanitarian aid and influence beliefs, attitudes, and decisions on humanitarian aid at the national and international levels. Her research has had a significant impact and has been shared with stakeholders such as European institutions, policymakers, and NGOs. Since 2021, she has served as a senior consultant for the European Commission and the European Parliament (DEVE Committee). She is the author of three monographs (two of which are forthcoming and included in the Springer Philosophy and Poverty Series) and several scientific articles.