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Ali Watson

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Ali Watson

Prof

 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5801-825X

  • School of International, Relations, Arts Building The Scores, St Andrews, KY16 9AX, UK

Personal profile

Research overview

Ali Watson was made Professor of International Relations in 2008 and has been Managing Director of the award-winning Third Generation Project since co-founding it in 2016. Originally trained as a macroeconomist at the University of Dundee, Ali's focus in teaching and research is based around an examination of the rights of marginalised actors and communities. This includes a specific focus on the place of children in the international system, where Ali's work has been described as 'foundational', and upon education and child welfare practices; as well as over a decade identifying, documenting and examining the impact of historic injustices on marginalised communities. Related to this, since 2013 Ali has been co-developing, with Ben Collins (University of Aberdeen), a research and teaching approach focused upon 'doing IR differently' working to unpack and then challenge the ways in which academia reinforces existing structural power relations, including with projects based in North America and East Africa. This work has been funded by the British Academy, National Geographic, the Global Challenges Research Fund, and the Sir Halley Stewart Trust, amongst others.
 
In 2016, Collins and Watson created the Third Generation Project (TGP), a think tank that focuses upon social and climate justice education. In addition to working directly with community partners, TGP specialises in developing student community engagement initiatives. This work has been recognised nationally and internationally by the UK Green Gown Awards 2021 (Student Engagement: Winner), the International Green Gown Awards 2022 (Student Engagement: Highly Commended); and the MacJannet Prize for Global Citizenship 2021 (Finalist) and 2024 (Honourable Mention).
 
Having grown up in an economically and socially deprived area of Aberdeen, Ali recognises the importance of educational opportunity, and works to create inclusive and supportive learning environments, whether in the classroom or beyond. In 2019 Ali was awarded an OBE for Services to Education.

Academic/Professional Qualification

MA (Hons), Economics and International Relations, University of Aberdeen

MSc, Economics, University of Glasgow

PhD, Economics, University of Dundee

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

  1. SDG 13 - Climate Action
    SDG 13 Climate Action
  2. SDG 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
    SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years

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