The Institute focuses on a number of specific social sciences, predominantly international relations; security studies; conflict analysis; environmental studies; and development studies. However, the approach adopted in these fields is not overtly compartmentalized. All this research is conducted within a single centre, and research is specifically attempting to draw from the methods, theories and data of all these disciplines. The unifying object of research that provides the logical impetus to integrate these normally disparate fields into a single coherent analysis is the task of investigating the ramifications of Northern and/or western intervention (diplomatic, military, economic, humanitarian, variations of these, etc.) in the South. In other words, the object of research - in simple terms, the dynamics and trajectories of historical and contemporary North-South relations as manifest in specific countries and regions - is subjected to a critical cross- and inter-disciplinary analysis derived from the aforesaid five key social sciences.

The objective of this research is to isolate the precise interrelated causes of multiple national and international crises, especially in the context of the dynamics and trajectories of North-South relations. This provides insight into the key policy failures on the part of governments, NGOs, and global governance institutions responsible for the production and escalation of these crises, and the extent and manner in which these crises interact with one another. In turn, it is hoped that this will provide a much clearer insight into the potential practical solutions - in terms of both policies and social structural transformation - required for policymakers and peoples to address these crises in a meaningful way.

Proposed Research Programme:

The relationship between the rise of international terrorism, the militarization of western societies, and the escalation of global ecological, economic and energy crises.

Subject areas:

The energy politics of the ‘War on Terror’
The proliferation of terror networks as a function of western energy interests
The escalation of ecological crisis in the context of western energy policies
Power, energy and democracy: who controls western energy policies?
Security for whom: People or corporate lobbies?
Globalization, national and international economic inequalities, and the instability of the global financial system
Civilizational collapse? Charting the potential cumulative impact of trends in energy scarcity, food insecurity, economic instability and climate change before the end of the 21st century