Her research focuses on China’s authoritarian governance, urbanization, land politics and cultural politics. Elena has a doctoral degree in Chinese Studies from the University of Tuebingen and an MA in Chinese Studies and Political Science from the University of Hamburg. She was a postdoctoral fellow in the German research network „Governance in China“. In her current research project funded by DFG, she investigates China’s steering capacity for achieving the integration of urban and rural administrations, economies and societies.