It is with great sadness that we write to let you know that PAIS alumnus Dr Dee Dutta passed away peacefully on Tuesday 21 November after a long illness. His wife, Su, was by his side.

Dee completed an MA in PAIS in 2014 before joining the PhD programme to research President Clinton, the CIA and Counter-Terrorism with Trevor McCrisken and Chris Moran as supervisors. He successfully defended his ESRC-funded thesis in 2019. During his time in PAIS, Dee was a much-loved member of the post-graduate community and was greatly valued by his students, who he taught on modules including ‘Politics of the USA’ and ‘US Foreign Policy’.

Chris and Trevor recall that PhD supervisions were always eventful and memorable, since Dee would regale us with wonderful stories from his hugely successful corporate career, which included very senior roles with Sony and Visa. As Head of Global Marketing for Sony, he was instrumental in growing the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) into new territories and markets, as well as blazing a trail for equal pay for female players. In the 2000s, he worked closely with EON Productions, the makers of the James Bond films, and was personally responsible for “arming” 007 with everything from high-tech laptops to exploding mobile phones. His rolodex of friends included everyone from David Dein, vice-chairman of Arsenal Football Club, to champion tennis player Maria Sharapova and legendary watchmaker Frank Muller. He also spoke fondly of his undergraduate student days in Liverpool many years earlier, listening to The Specials and taking part in student demonstrations.

After finishing his PhD, Dee ran for election as a Labour Party councillor in North Northamptonshire before retiring to Scotland, where he could indulge in his passion for top-shelf whisky. A scholar, student and colleague who was always larger than life, he will be dearly missed by his family, friends and the Warwick community at large. Plans for an event in his name will be announced by Trevor and Chris at a later date.

Diego Telias is currently a PhD candidate in Political Science at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, academic collaborator of the Centre for Asian Studies at the same university, and editorial assistant of the Revista de Ciencia Política. He is also an Associate Researcher of the Millennium Nucleus on the Impacts of China in Latin America (ICLAC). His areas of interest are foreign policy analysis and Latin America-East Asia relations.

LAWN-EASG Talk: This talk explores the complex dynamics arising from the ascent of China and how countries, whether neighboring states or middle powers, position themselves toward this great power. Why have certain governments imposed bans on Chinese companies in 5G bidding processes while others have refrained from such actions? Or why do countries adopt contrasting positions when faced with allegations of human rights violations in Xinjiang? This investigation compares two pairs of countries from different regions (Chile - Uruguay in Latin America and the Czech Republic - Hungary in Central Europe) and through an in-depth analysis of official documents and 120 interviews, analyses if economic leverage, a crucial factor mentioned in the literature, is the main explanation that influences those positions.

Date: Tuesday, 28th November
Time: 14:00 -15:30
Venue: E2.02, Social Sciences Building

Catherine Jones is a lecturer at the University of St Andrews, previously she was a research fellow at the University of Warwick (2012-2018) and received her PhD from the University of Reading. Her research focuses on three areas of work: (1) agency of East Asian states in international order including China's engagement with global order, (2) the China-North Korea relationship, (3) and the politics and development in Southeast Asia. Across these areas she has incorporated wargames and wargaming into her teaching and as an analytical tool for her research. In this context she has particular interests in engaging with diverse perspectives and incorporating voices from less prominent parts of the world.

Catherine's talk addresses a critical gap in current literature by highlighting the importance of emotions in understanding alliance dynamics and management. It explores how the wider context, shaped by emotions among the parties, particularly anxiety, heightened tensions and fear, can impact alliance management. In contexts with heightened emotions, reassurance may be more challenging, contrasting with situations lacking an anxious state. This talk draws upon a range of examples in Northeast Asia to demonstrate the variety of effects of anxiety in alliances, providing significant insights for both policy and theory.

Date: Thursday, 23/11/2023
Time: 16:15-17:30
Venue: Social Sciences Building, Room A0.23

22nd October will mark the anniversary of the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, the most significant event in the Chinese political calendar which decides policy and membership of the Chinese government for the next 5 years. In this talk, will be exploring the different impacts and implications of the 20th National Congress to understand its relevance for China and the broader region.

Date: Thursday, 26/10/2023

Time: 16:15-17:30

Venue: R1.15, Ramphal Building

Dr Seb Rumsby is an interdisciplinary scholar with a wide range of interests including everyday politics, labour exploitation, undocumented migration, ethno-religious politics, grassroots development and non-national histories. Seb unites these diverse themes with an empirical focus on Southeast Asian worlds and people. He completed his PhD at University of Warwick's Department for Politics and International Studies in 2020, before lecturing in Southeast Asian Politics and Queen Mary University of London. He is now a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at University of Birmingham.

His talk is based on his recently published book Development in Spirit: Religious Transformation and Everyday Politics in Vietnam's Highlands. The effects of development and nation-building projects are always felt unevenly, especially by marginalised communities. But these communities do not lack agency in this process. How do they participate in, negotiate, or resist state-led development? And what role do everyday religious and spiritual practices play therein? In his important new book, Development in Spirit, Seb Rumsby offers an original perspective on how the Hmong communities in the Vietnamese highlands have responded to development initiatives. Centring the everyday political, economic, and religious practices of local residents, Rumsby shows that Christianisation has opened a route to ‘unplanned development’ that put the Hmong on a trajectory both of formal integration into the economy and resistance to state authority and religious persecution.

Date: Tuesday, 17/10/2023
Time: 16:15-17:30
Venue: Zeeman Building, Room A1.01