Dr Edward Lemon
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
College of Social Sciences and International Studies, University of ExeterGraduation date: October 2016
Research topic: Governing Islam and Security in Tajikistan and Beyond: The Emergence of Transnational Authoritarian Security Governance
Current position:
I am now a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow at the Department of Political Science and Harriman Institute, Columbia University, New York. I am working on a number of research projects relating to terrorism and security in Central Asia, teaching courses on international relations and Central Asian politics, and revising my thesis for publication as a book.Research supervisors: TBD,
Email: ejl2174@columbia.edu
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/edwardlemon3
Website/Blog: https://sipa.columbia.edu/faculty-research/faculty-directory/edward-lemon
Dr Oscar Berglund
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, University of BristolGraduation date: March 2017
Research topic: Contesting Austerity through Civil Disobedience: The PAH and the Spanish Housing Crisis
Current position:
Senior Teaching Associate in Public Policy; Research Associate in Sociology, Politics and International StudiesTwitter: https://www.twitter.com/berglund_oscar
Website/Blog: http://www.bris.ac.uk/sps/people/person/oscar-j-berglund/overview.html
Dr Max Roger Taylor
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
PhD Researcher in Political Science and International Studies (ESRC 1+3)
Department of Politics, Languages and International Studies, University of BathStart date: September 2014
Graduation date: June 2019
Research topic: Seeking common ground: Assessing the practical implementation of the EU’s normative power in EU-China relations
My thesis seeks to assess the mechanisms used by the EU to practically coordinate and employ its values (or norms) in EU-China diplomatic dialogues. The bilateral relationship represents arguably the hardest test case for the EU’s normative power, due to the tension between the Union’s significant economic interests and its constitutional mandate to uphold its values with this key bilateral partner, that holds different values in many areas.Research supervisors: Professor Charles Lees, Dr Maria Garcia
Professional memberships/Positions held:
Undergraduate Teaching Assistant, Visiting Scholar Renmin University of China, Co-chair University of Bath International Relations and Postgraduate Group (IREP).Email: M.R.Taylor@bath.ac.uk
Tristan Hotham
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
PhD Researcher in Politics (ESRC +3)
Department of Politics, Languages and International Studies, University of BathStart date: September 2016
Graduation date: April 2021
Research topic: Examining the Impact and Effectiveness of Facebook on Party Campaigns
I am examining the use of Facebook as a political campaign tool by British political parties across three contexts, the 2015 General Election, 2017 General Election and the 2016 Welsh Assembly Elections. Through analysing Facebook data and undertaking interviews, I will evidence how and why Facebook is used, questioning its effectiveness and impact upon parties’ campaigns. Facebook appears to be a vital tool, that as part of a new data led political zeitgeist, within an era of party decline and radicalism, may help or hinder parties to campaign.Research supervisors: Dr Nick Startin, Dr David Cutts, Prof. Roger Scully
Professional memberships/Positions held:
PSA Early Career MemberPOLIS Student Research Rep
Email: th612@bath.ac.uk
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TristanHotham
Dr Rupert Alcock
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
PhD Researcher in Politics (ESRC +3)
School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, University of BristolStart date: September 2012
Graduation date: July 2017
Research topic: Governing the new unconscious
Current position:
Senior Teaching AssociateResearch supervisors: Professor Terrell Carver, Dr Brad Evans
Email: Rupert.Alcock@bristol.ac.uk
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/RupertAlcock
George Boss
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
PhD Researcher in Political Science and International Studies (ESRC +3)
School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, University of BristolStart date: September 2017
Graduation date: March 2022
Research topic: Developing a Marxian theory of historically-created need, and exploring its significance.
My research explores the differing conceptions of human need that have emerged from the work of Marx, and in the Marxist canon. By developing a distinctive new perspective on human need, I will be seeking to address problems in the contemporary philosophy of needs, as well as identifying applications.Research supervisors: Professor Terrell Carver, Dr Jonathan Floyd
Email: George.boss@bristol.ac.uk
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgeboss/
Dr Cameron Hunter
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
PhD Researcher in Political Science and International Studies (ESRC 1+3)
School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, University of BristolStart date: September 2013
Graduation date: September 2018
Research topic: US Reactions to China’s “Rise in Space”
Drawing on public and declassified documents, my research tracks the construction of the “Chinese Space Threat” in US policy discourses from 1958 to the present. I particularly focus on China’s so-called “rise in space,” a concept used by American observers to contextualise events since 2000. This has included the launch of China’s first person into space and the demonstration of a series of technologies with the potential to be used as “space weapons.” Using a theoretical approach which combines insights from Critical Security and Science and Technology Studies, my project explores the technopolitics which constitute the official US response to China’s “new” technical capabilities.Research supervisors: Professor Yongin Zhang, Dr Columba Peoples
Professional memberships/Positions held:
British Research Council Fellow, Library of Congress (2015), Research Fellow, Schumacher InstituteEmail: ch13595@bristol.ac.uk
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CP_Hunter
Hannah Willis
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
PhD Researcher in Politics (ESRC 1+3)
College of Social Sciences and International Studies, University of ExeterStart date: September 2016
Research topic: Membership Surges in Political Parties: What does this mean for the party, its members and society?
Only a small percentage of citizens in advanced industrial democracies are members of a political party; the numbers have largely been declining over the last five decades. Current knowledge tells us that the minority who do join have five dimensions of incentives for doing so, some being more popular than others. Yet, when a party experiences an acute period of expansion in its memberbase, do peoples’ incentives for joining change? Are different kinds of people attracted? How does this affect the party and wider society? Using advanced statistical methods, supplemented with qualitative interviews and content analysis, the project aims to answers these questions.Research supervisors: Professor Nicole Bollever
Email: hw487@exeter.ac.uk
Dr Rosie Walters
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
PhD Researcher in Political Science and International Studies (ESRC 1+3)
School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, University of BristolStart date: September 2015
Graduation date: November 2019
Research topic: Girl Power Discourses in International Development
My research focuses on prominent campaigns that advocate investing in young women in developing countries and posit girls’ education as the solution to global poverty.Research supervisors: Professor Jutta Weldes, Dr Karen Tucker
Email: rosie.walters@bristol.ac.uk
Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosie_walters
Dr Jack O. Griffiths
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
PhD Researcher in Political Science and International Studies (ESRC 1+3)
College of Social Sciences and International Studies, University of ExeterStart date: September 2013
Graduation date: September 2018
Research topic: The Ontology, Ethics, and Politics of Capability
I am a PhD candidate based in the Department of Politics. My research lies at the intersection of political thought, ethics, and philosophy of biology, focusing on the relationships between political/ethical thinking and the ways in which we conceive of the living world and the place of humanity within it.My current research centres on the concept of capability (à la the ‘capability approach’ of Sen and Nussbaum), as a point through which to critically discuss political concepts such as freedom, power, and individual and social development, and their relations to our understanding of life and nature.
Research supervisors: Dr. Robin Durie, Professor John Dupre
Email: jg348@exeter.ac.uk
Dr Ana Almuedo-Castillo
Political Sciences and International Studies Alumni
PhD Researcher in Political Sciences and International Studies (ESRC +3)
College of Social Sciences and International Studies, University of ExeterStart date: September 2014
Graduation date: May 2018
Research topic: Resisting the Sectarian: A paradigm for peacebuilding in Lebanon
My thesis focuses on social and political change and the construction of peace from the grassroots, taking Lebanon as a country of study. My research examines cases where the sectarian system is contested and challenged through forms of quiet and ordinary resistance on the ground. I work on the premise that there are cases experiencing on-going and intrinsic processes that may potentially work as platforms of social change and conflict transformation.Research supervisors: Dr William Gallois, Dr Rana Jawad
Professional memberships/Positions held:
Postgraduate Teaching AssistantStudent Rep Politics and the IAIS. Co-chair of the Liaison Forum of the College of SSIS.
Email: aa517@exeter.ac.uk
Twitter: https://twitter.com/anaalmuedo