Key research themes
1. How do neoliberal and Foucauldian governmentality frameworks explain global governance and state transformation in the context of globalization?
This research theme explores the application of governmentality theory, especially Foucauldian notions of power as 'conduct of conduct', to understand transformations in state sovereignty, authority distribution, and governance practices in a globalized world. Emphasis is placed on neoliberal governmentality as a rationality re-shaping political and social orders, the diffusion of governance beyond the nation-state, and the implications for both liberal and illiberal contexts. It matters because understanding these shifts in power rationalities offers nuanced insights into global political reorganization beyond traditional state-centric or realist frameworks.
2. What are the dynamics and challenges of disaggregated authority and governance practices in the global political order?
This theme investigates how globalization leads to multiple overlapping and fragmented spheres of authority that complicate traditional models of governance based on centralized state authority. It addresses how governance emerges through informal processes, norm diffusion, and complex networks rather than hierarchical government structures. Understanding these dynamics is vital for grasping the evolving nature of global governance—beyond state-centric or hegemonic models—and the practical implications for policy and institutional design in a multi-actor, multi-level world.
3. How is global memory politics and transnational narratives employed as modalities of governmentality to shape subjectivities and legitimize global governance?
This theme focuses on the intersection of memory politics, human rights, and global governance, analyzing how global narratives—especially about events like the Holocaust—function as mechanisms of power that produce normative citizen-subjects and shape collective identities. It investigates the governance effects of remembrance practices, including their roles in structuring inclusion, exclusion, and political struggle at global and local levels. This area matters for understanding how cultural and mnemonic practices are embedded within broader governmental rationalities and power relations in an interconnected world.