Prof Milja Kurki
BA University of Hull; MscEcon University of Wales, Aberystwyth; PhD University of Wales, Aberystwyth

EH Carr Chair
Department of International Politics
Contact Details
- Email: mlk@aber.ac.uk
- ORCID: 0000-0003-4365-0436
- Office: 2.07, International Politics Building
- Phone: +44 (0) 1970 628639
- Twitter: @Kurki_m
- Research Portal Profile
Profile
I'm interested in how we think about the world and the differences in how we see and 'read' what is going on around us. I've explored questions around how we analyse 'causes' (of wars, development) in international politics and also the contested nature of democracy and how this affects the attempts to promote democracy. Since 2015 I've worked on an exciting inter-disciplinary project on cosmological imagination in the study and practice of international relations. This has involved asking important questions around scientific cosmology, post-humanism and decolonisation of knowledge.
I'm a co-editor of the journal International Relations, Director of the Planetary Challenges and Politics Centre at Aberystwyth and the Director of Research in the Department of International Politics. Between 2008 and 2012 I acted as the Principal Investigator of a major research project 'Political Economies of Democratisation' funded by the European Research Council.
Teaching
Module Coordinator
- IPM0520 - International Politics
- IPM2120 - Research in Politics and International Studies
- IP20120 - International Relations: Perspectives and Debates
- PGM0210 - Principles of Research Design
Lecturer
Coordinator
- PGM0210 - Principles of Research Design
- IPM0520 - International Politics
- PGM4210 - Principles of Research Design
- IP20120 - International Relations: Perspectives and Debates
- IPM2120 - Research in Politics and International Studies
Tutor
- GW30000 - Dulliau Ymchwil + Traethawd Estynedig
- PGM0210 - Principles of Research Design
- IP20120 - International Relations: Perspectives and Debates
- GW20120 - Cysylltiadau Rhyngwladol: Safbwyntiau a Thrafodaethau
- IPM2120 - Research in Politics and International Studies
Blackboard Dept Admin
Research
My research is focused on theoretical and conceptual study of international politics but I'm is also interested in exploration of the policy implications of conceptual issues. My PhD was focused on the analysis of the meaning of causality in IR scholarship. I then led a major European Research Council project on the conceptual foundations of democracy promotion practices between 2008 and 2012, a project which involved extensive policy engagement. Currently, I'm working on a research agenda developed at the intersection of natural and social sciences: I'm interested in the ways in which our cosmological assumptions structure how we approach international relations and what would happen to ways in which we can do politics if we rethink cosmological framings. These questions are of crucial importance in how we tackle 21st century global challenges, not least for how we approach the question of climate change.
Responsibilities
Director of Research
Office Hours (Student Contact Times)
- Monday 11.30-12.30
- Wednesday 09.30-10.30