Joel Odota is a PhD Candidate based at the John Curtin Institute of Public Policy (JCIPP), here at the Curtin University Business School. Joel's PhD thesis is on China under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and he compares three cases within the Kenyan state. Joel's work broadly looks at China-Africa Relations, especially under the BRI framework, the agency of small states in the international system, and Australia-Africa relations, and contemporary geopolitical competition.

Joel is from Uganda and has been educated across three continents (Africa, Asia, and Oceania), with numerous international travels and cultural experiences. Joel co-founded the China-Uganda Research Network (CURN), a think tank based at the Makerere University Business School (MUBS) in Kampala that aims to nurture young policy analysts of China-Africa relations, create a safe platform for sharing research and ideas on the dynamics of the relationship, forge collaboration among scholars, and provide the public with nuanced viewpoints on foreign policy. Joel's work has appeared in peer-reviewed journals, edited volumes, and policy platforms such as the Australian Institute of International Affairs, the Development Policy Centre, and War on the Rocks. Joel is a frequent speaker at international conferences.