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Dr. Alex Waterman

Lecturer

Area
School of Social Sciences
Faculty of Mgmt, Law & Social Sciences
Language
hi
E-mail
a.waterman@bradford.ac.uk
Dr. Alex Waterman

Biography

I joined as Lecturer in Peace Studies and International Development at the University of Bradford in September 2023. Prior to this, I worked as a Research Fellow (India/Asia) at the German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA), Hamburg (2021-2023) and the University of Leeds (2015-2021). Since 2022, I coedit the journal Civil Wars.


My research has been published in leading journals such as Journal of Global Security Studies, International Peacekeeping, Asian Security, Civil Wars and Small Wars & Insurgencies, and in 2020 my doctoral research won the Global Policy North Outstanding Thesis Prize. I have held affiliations with the Modern War Institute at West Point, the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS), Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MPIDSA) and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). In 2021, I won a Faculty "Outstanding Teaching" prize at the University of Leeds.

Research

My research agenda investigates how actors, from state and non-state armed actors to ceasefire brokers, peacebuilders and civil society actors, understand and try to shape the complex moving parts, (in)formal rules and institutions that make up conflict-affected settings. This research – best encapsulated in my co- authored agenda piece published in Civil Wars (2020) reimagines these processes through the prism of ‘order’ - predictable rules, relationships and institutions that can tell us about how power and authority is constructed in fragile and conflict-affected settings. Through my academic research, editorial agenda with Civil Wars and policy engagement, I aim to force a rethinking of 1) the micro-dynamics of wartime political order and 2) the knowledge generation and dissemination processes that enables organisations (and global governance structures more broadly) to better capture and retain an understanding of these micro-dynamics, enabling better, more equitable responses to the enduring global challenge of civil war.

To date, my research has unearthed these processes using original interview, archival and observational data from two forgotten conflicts in Northeast India - Assam and Nagaland (current book project, under review). My ongoing projects explore these processes across a broader global, comparative perspective. 

Research interests summary:
- Order in Civil Wars
- Knowledge Processes in Civil Wars
- Ceasefires and Peace Processes
- Insurgency and Counterinsurgency
- Northeast India
- South Asian Security 

Teaching

I teach across the department's suite of modules on International Relations, Security, Conflict and Peace Studies at both the postgraduate and undergraduate levels.

PhD Supervision

If you are interested in taking on a PhD with me, please send me an email enclosing your proposal, CV, and a short but detailed rationale detailing how your research fits with one of the below themes, approaches or regional interests:


Themes:
– Counterinsurgency and irregular warfare doctrine and practice: I particularly welcome proposals seeking to explore the complex politics and micro-dynamics of counterinsurgencies. I am interested in works that seek to move beyond the “classical” counterinsurgency literature and all of its problems.
– Micro-dynamics of civil wars: As co-editor of Civil Wars journal I am very much interested in work across the broad field of civil wars, but specifically I’m interested in their micro-dynamics. If you are submitting a proposal within this field, it’s a good idea to flick through the pages of Civil Wars since 2022 before submitting your proposal (particularly our editorial statements where you will get a flavour of the kinds of themes we are interested in!).
– The concept of order as applied to civil wars, peace processes and peacebuilding/peacekeeping: This is a specific, but important, theoretical interest and I would welcome proposals in this area. For an idea of what I am referring to here, see this article (let me know if you need access).
– Rebel Governance: I would be particularly interested in work that pushes the boundaries of conventional assumptions in the rebel governance literature. You can see both my work on this area and the pages of Civil Wars for a flavour of the kind of themes and debates I am interested in.
– Internal Rebel Politics: If you are interested in this field and would like to have a discussion, please contact me before developing a fuller proposal.
Regional Interests
The bulk of my early work is focused on South Asia, specifically the politics of conflict in (Northeast) India. I would welcome proposals from across South Asia.

I am also working on comparative projects involving cases from Africa (i.e. Nigeria, Angola) and the Middle East (Israel-Palestine), so if your proposal fits any of the above themes then I am open to a conversation about a broader geographical scope, provided we can get you the right area-specific knowledge.

Approaches to the above
– Comparative
– Single-case
– Qualitative
– Fieldwork
– Micro-dynamics, or an exploration of mutli-layered/multi-level dynamics

Submitting a Proposal
Interested in submitting a proposal? Check out the following pages for guidance before submitting:
– https://www.prospects.ac.uk/postgraduate-study/phd-study/how-to-write-a-successful-research-proposal
– https://www.york.ac.uk/politics/phd-study/phd_proposal/


Student Office Hours for 2025/2026 Semester 1:

Thursday 1330-1530 every week (my office)
Fridays, usually from 1230-1400, but there are some amendments on specific weeks, which are detailed below:

  • Friday 10th October, 1230-1400 (in person)
  • Friday 17 October, 1230-1400 (in person)
  • Friday 24 October, 1100-1200 (online)
  • Friday 31 October, 1230-1400 (in person)
  • Friday 7 November, 1100-1200 (online) 
  • Friday 14 November, 1100-1230 (online)
  • Friday 21 November, 1100-1400 (in person)
  • Friday 28 November, 1100-1230 (online)
  • Friday 5 December, 1100-1400 (in person)
  • Friday 12 December, 1100-1230 (online)

Online meetings will be held on Microsoft Teams, simply by emailing me to tell me that you are here for the office hours and are ready to meet.

Modules

  • Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding - PES7046-B
  • Contemporary International Relations - PES5020-B
  • Peacebuilding, Conflict and Security - PES5024-B
  • Politics, Security and Development in South Asia - PES7069B

Professional activities

Journal reviews (1)

  • Civil Wars - EDITOR (1 January 2022)

Publications

Blog (3)

Book chapter (9)

  • South Asia: India

    Alex Waterman (2022) Armed Conflict Survey 2022. In IISS editor(s) International Institute for Strategic Studies.

  • Three Narratives of Connectivity, Development, and Insurgency in Northeast India: Analysis and Implications

    Alex Waterman (2022) Situating India’s Northeast in the Bay of Bengal Regional Architecture. Observer Research Foundation; Global Policy Journal.

  • South Asia: Northeast India/CPI-Maoist

    Alex Waterman (2021) Armed Conflict Survey 2021. In IISS editor(s) International Institute of Strategic Studies.

  • Normalcy Restored? The Lingering Drivers of Insurgency in Northeast India

    Alex Waterman (2021) Terrorism, Security and Development in South Asia: National. Regional and Global Implications. Routledge.

  • South Asia: Northeast India

    Alex Waterman (2020) Armed Conflict Survey 2020. In IISS editor(s) IISS.

  • Managing 'War Amongst Peoples'

    Alex Waterman (2019) War Amongst the People: Critical Assessments. In David Brown, Donette Murray, Malte Riemann, Norma Rossi and Martin A. Smith editor(s) Howgate.

  • South Asia: Northeast India

    Alex Waterman (2019) Armed Conflict Survey 2019. In IISS editor(s) IISS.

  • South Asia: Northeast India

    Alex Waterman (2018) Armed Conflict Survey 2018. In IISS editor(s) IISS.

  • South Asia: 2017

    Alex Waterman (2017) Armed Conflict Survey 2017. In IISS editor(s) IISS.

Chapter in book (1)

  • Counterinsurgency

    Alex Waterman (2025) In Beate Jahn and Sebastian Schindler editor(s) Elgar. 68-69.

Editorial (2)

Other journal (1)

Peer reviewed journal (8)

Published report (1)