Inspiring research
+ Contact
Theme leader
Prof Steve McCorriston
01392 723003
S.McCorriston@exeter.ac.uk
This theme addresses key issues associated with insecurity, instability, uncertainty and rapid, far-reaching and sometimes unpredictable change.
Global Uncertainties
The Global Uncertainties theme aims to foster wide-ranging, high quality and cross-disciplinary research to address key issues associated with insecurity, uncertainty and rapid, far-reaching and sometimes unpredictable change in an increasingly inter-connected world.
The theme draws on expertise across a number of areas including:
- The disciplines of politics, business and economics, history and sociology
- The Strategy and Security Institute
- The Centre for Global and Imperial History
- The Centre for War, State and Society
- The Institute for Arab and Islamic Studies
- The Centre of Advanced International Studies
REF case studies
The Research Excellence Framework (REF) is the system used by the UK government for assessing the quality of research in higher education institutions.
Exeter came 16th in the REF 2014. A number of case studies are submitted on which the University is assessed: below are those we submitted related to the Global Uncertainties theme.
| Case study | Description |
|---|---|
| Advising on deradicalisation | Since 2008, Dr Omar Ashour has emerged as a leading expert on de-radicalisation and transitions from armed to unarmed activism, advising governments (eg, UK, Canada, Netherlands), intergovernmental organisations (eg, UN and EU) and NGOs. |
| Broadening understanding of entrepreneurship and innovation | Led by Professor Gordon Murray OBE, research at the University of Exeter continues to play a significant role in broadening understanding of this increasingly important area. Professor Murray’s research and expertise have assisted in shaping policy in several countries, including the UK, and have underpinned the formation of an influential international academic policymaker forum. |
| Political dynamics in post-2003 Iraq | Professor Gareth Stansfield’s research at the University of Exeter into aspects of post-2003 Iraq has informed UK government and international policy towards Iraq since the invasion, and has had impact on policy makers in the US and the UN, through interventions raised and derived from his research. |
| Reducing the humanitarian harms of conflict | Professor Brian Rappert’s research has benefited international efforts to limit the consequences of the use of force. It has done this by challenging conventional wisdom, identifying poorly recognised issues; evaluating emerging policy initiatives by governments, international agencies, science academies and non-government agencies and much more. |
| Supporting the professional development of air forces personnel | Professor Richard Overy’s research on key issues of air power history and theory has influenced how both UK and International air forces consider key areas of air power history and their application to current issues of air power doctrine and development. |
| Understanding and influencing military transformation and operations | Since the end of the Cold War, and especially in the last decade, the armed forces have undergone profound organizational and cultural transformations. Professor Anthony King’s research has been able to make a notable contribution to this process. Through critical sociological analysis, he has: enhanced the British army’s socio-political grasp of key contemporary theatres of operation; informed the education and training of high-ranking officers; and stimulated debates about defence policy. |
Our impact
- A major report focusing on the UK's strategic reorientation of its defence and security in the Gulf was co-authored by Prof Gareth Stansfield. The report, A Return to East of Suez? UK Military Deployment to the Gulf, was produced by the Royal United Sevices Institute (RUSI), which advises governments and other policy makers.
- A £500,000 project to assess conflict management in central Asia is being led by Dr John Heathershaw. Funded by the Economics and Social Research Council (ESRC), the three year project will investigate how conflict management affects the development of relationships in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.
- Transparency of Food Prices project (TRANSFOP), led by Prof Steve McCorriston, focuses on the impact of volatile commodity markets on food prices and why the effect varies across countries.
- Prof McCorriston has recently submitted a report to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on competition in the food sector and the on-going impacts of volatile commodity markets on the food sector across OECD member countries.
