Principal’s Medal: Natosha Hoduski
Presented by Professor Dame Sally Mapstone FRSE
Tuesday 3 December – afternoon ceremony
I would now like to introduce the Principal’s Medal. This award was inaugurated fifteen years ago with a gift from three anonymous donors and is supported by Ede and Ravenscroft, believed to be the oldest firm of tailors and robe-makers in the world.
The award of the Principal’s Medal recognises students who display exceptional endeavour and achievement during their time at St Andrews. The medal may be awarded to final-year undergraduates and postgraduates in any discipline, and the achievements celebrated are both academic and extra-curricular.
Today, the Principal’s Medal is being awarded to a truly outstanding student, Natosha Hoduski, who has just graduated with a PhD in International Relations.
Natosha is an interdisciplinary scholar working at the intersection of international relations, geography and sustainable development. Her academic focus has been on environmental security with an emphasis on transboundary water security, and her PhD thesis focused on the hydropolitics of conflict in Syria. She has presented papers at such prestigious conferences as the British International Studies Association Conference (BISA) and the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies (BRISMES) Conference and has also been a guest lecturer at the University of Edinburgh and at Whitmore College in the USA.
Alongside her PhD work, Natosha has taken on numerous fellowships and research associateships and has established herself as an internationally recognised expert on water weaponisation and environmental issues, with her research work already impacting policymaking on both a local and an international scale.
Natosha has been a fellow at the Centre for Syrian Studies at the University of St Andrews for the past four and a half years. She was a Research Associate at the Center for Global Security Research at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in 2020, and a Research Assistant at the globally renowned thinktank The Fund for Peace in 2021. In 2022, she was a Research Intern at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, where she worked in the Environment Division, supporting the Water Convention and Protocol on Water and Health team. In 2023-2024, she completed a prestigious year-long ecological security fellowship at the Centre for Climate and Security housed within the Council on Strategic Risks.
Beyond her academic achievements, Natosha has had a highly positive impact on the School of International Relations and on the wider University community. Natosha has served as the Deputy Warden at Agnes Blackadder and Powell Halls, in which role she has been instrumental in constructing a strong wardennial team, creating an inclusive and supportive environment across the halls, and fostering a culture of kindness and collegiality.
Natosha has also worked as the Community Assistant at St Leonard’s Postgraduate College, aiming to construct a strong and inclusive postgraduate community. Natosha has used this position to advocate for the postgraduate community, endeavouring to secure and maintain study spaces for postgraduate students and helping them navigate the cost of living crisis by running several support events.
Of notable mention is the fact that Natosha planned and ran St Leonard’s first PG Wellbeing Week, which incorporated a broad spectrum of activities to support postgraduates’ physical, mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing. More generally, Natosha has organised a wide spectrum of engaging activities for the benefit of the wider postgraduate community, fostering a strong sense of belonging.
Natosha has also been a cornerstone of the International Relations PhD community, in which she is well known for her kindness, support and advice, as well as for consistently creating new opportunities for community building experiences, from potluck-style dinners to beach bonfires and coastal path hikes to camping trips across Scotland. This was particularly beneficial for the cohort of students who had to deal with the hardships of the pandemic and post-pandemic. At a time of crisis, Natosha helped rebuild a community when many were struggling to feel part of it.
In addition to all this, during her studies, Natosha has volunteered at a therapeutic riding clinic that specialises in emotional support and therapy targeting first responders experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder and children with developmental disabilities. At the same time, she has found the time to pursue her artistic talents, publishing a novel, painting, and publishing poetry through the Art Society at St Andrews.
Natosha has been an exemplary PhD student: high-achieving, energetic, creative, generous and collegial. Natosha, in recognition of your many accomplishments both academically and personally during your time at St Andrews, it gives me great pleasure to bestow upon you the Principal’s Medal.