Previously, Valery was a Senior Non-Resident Fellow at the Jamestown Foundation in Washington, D.C., covering developments in the North Caucasus for the Eurasia Daily Monitor electronic publication. From 2002-2007, Valery was based in Vladikavkaz and coordinated media development activities for the non-profit Institute for War and Peace Reporting in the North Caucasus. Valery holds a BA in History from North Ossetia State University, an MPP from the University of Maryland, College Park, and is working toward completion of a Ph.D. in political science at Arizona State University. His research interests extend to ethnic and religious conflict, secession, and Russian and Eurasian history. Valery’s scientific articles appeared in Nationalities Papers, Politics and Religion, Post-Soviet Affairs, Social Science Quarterly, and Caucasus Survey.