Publication alert! Take a look at the newly published Oxford University Press book Why Political Theory Needs Social Science, edited by Alice Baderin and David Miller. Chapter 9, 'Using Interviews in the Political Philosophy of Resistance', is by IRPH's Dr Guy Aitchison.

New in Loughborough's 'What our students say' series: Andres Arcones, who graduated in 2025, tells us about his experiences studying for a BA in History at Loughborough. 'Learning with academic experts who have a real passion and curiosity for their subject was incredibly cool.'

What Thucydides Could Really Teach Trump “Athens did not fall because it lacked power; power changed Athens” #realism #geopolitics #Thucydides #War #restraint #Pericles #power #strategy #alliances #Trump #narrative #nato #hubris #melos

I'll be presenting at this conference on animals and philosophy in Reading in May. You can register to attend for free at the link below!

May interest someone wanting to work with the Anarchism Research Group (@anarchismresgroup.bsky.social). IRPH is also the home of the journal Anarchist Studies. @anarchiststudies.bsky.social

IRPH's Dr Duncan Depledge, Dr Tamiris Santos (@tamispsantos.bsky.social), and Dr Tom Hobson have a paper in Contemporary Security Policy's latest issue. You can read 'The UK Ministry of Defence, “Low-Carbon Warfare,” and the struggle to construct novel sociotechnical imaginaries of future war' now.

💷👇Funding opportunity for doctoral research in my department. Get in touch if you're interested in submitting a proposal around #anarchism, #pacifism and/or #nonviolence.

Another great entry in the 'What Our Students Say' series. Josh McWilliams graduated with a degree in History and Politics in 2025. 'I knew it right away that Loughborough was featuring in my university applications.'

PhD proposals wanted for the annual scholarship competition at @lborouniversity.bsky.social School of Social Sciences and Humanities! Looking forward to receiving proposals on #peace and #security, internal #conflicts, #PVE, particularly but not exclusively with a focus on #WestAfrica.

Interested in doing a PhD? See below for an upcoming opportunity in my department!

I'd be happy to support potential applicants working in my research areas, including (but not limited to) animals in moral and political philosophy.

Applications are open for PhD studentships in the School of Social Sciences and the Humanities, of which IRPH is a part. Deadline: 12 March. Open call: www.lboro.ac.uk/study/postgr... Call for UK applicants from a Black, Asian, or Minority Ethnic background: www.lboro.ac.uk/study/postgr...

Trump and his aides invoke frequently Thucydides when they discuss American foreign policy, but misunderstand or misrepresent his words. In a new paper, IRPH's Dr Tom Waldman (Senior Lecturer in Security Studies) asks what Thucydides could REALLY teach Trump.

Last week, Loughborough University marked Holocaust Memorial Day. This included IRPH's Dr Paul Maddrell delivering a lecture called 'The Preventability of the Holocaust'. You can read more about Holocaust Memorial Day at Loughborough below.

Huge congratulations to IRPH's Pragya Rai, who passed her doctoral viva with modest corrections. Congratulations Dr Rai! Pragya's thesis, The Role of Misogyny in Far-Right Violent Extremist Discourse, was examined by Professor Caron Gentry (Lancaster) and Dr Victoria Browne (IRPH).

We're very happy to share that IRPH's Dr Guy Aitchison has been awarded a grant by the Leverhulme Trust for ‘The Right to Liveability: An Ethical Assessment'. The three-year, £222,648 project begins on 1 July 2026. He will be recruiting a Research Assistant to work on the project soon!

New from @lboropr.bsky.social: 'Moral people should support "lab-grown" meat, even if they reject conventional meat – new ethics research suggests', covering my recent work on cultivated meat and virtue ethics! www.lboro.ac.uk/media-centre...

IRPH's Prakash Rote recently co-convened a panel at NorDev25 in Oslo, Norway, called Problematising Solidarity, Social Justice and Sustainability. Prakash's paper was 'A vernacular understanding of terrorism from the global south'. A journal special issue is underway; watch this space!

Why study International Security at Loughborough? A new informational video (featuring @alexchristoy.bsky.social, @giuliapiccolino.bsky.social, and others!) is now live on @lborouniversity.bsky.social's YouTube channel.

In March, I'm going to be visiting the London campus of Loughborough University to speak at an event called 'Is Capital Alive?' to mark the release of a new book from my law colleague Clair Quentin. If you'd like to join us, the details are below! www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/is-capital...

I'm pleased to share that I've won a pump-priming grant from CARMA - Cellular Agriculture Manufacturing Hub. I'll be working with Jack Waverley and Victoria Stephens (both of the University of Manchester) to explore prospects for cellular agriculture in the UK fashion industry.

Did you catch last night's The World Tonight on Radio 4? It contained more great coverage work from IRPH's Professor Marcus Collins (@elhistorioso.bsky.social) on 'The BBC’s First Homosexual'. The show is available on BBC Sounds; the discussion starts at about the 37 minute mark.

Congratulations to Anouska Kecojevic, who recently graduated from our International Security MA programme and was awarded a School of Social Sciences and Humanities Community Prize for her contribution to the programme, the department, and the School. Anouska: we wish you the best!

Some recent news...

Research in dusty #BBC archives on how #LGBT people were portrayed in the media in the 1950s by my friend and colleague Marcus Collins comes to life in a play! Thanks to @theguardian.com for telling the story. @irph.bsky.social @lboropr.bsky.social

I'm very excited to share this news! Anyone interested in animals in the history of thought, women in the history of philosophy, or animal biography should be aware of Dan's research. Watch this space for forthcoming publications...

Huge congratulations to IRPH's Dr Dan Breeze (@danielbreeze.com), who this week passed his PhD viva with no corrections. His thesis, Creeds of Kinship: An Animal-Human History of the Lives and Ideas of Anna Kingsford and Henry Salt, was examined by @janehamlett.bsky.social and @msadams.bsky.social.

📢 Delighted to announce publication of #pacifist rejoinders to the #Hitler question, with @ejisbisa.bsky.social: doi.org/10.1017/eis..... Paper tackles head on some of arguments pacifist detractors expect victory over, complicating their critique, & expanding unpacking pacifist critique.

The Guardian has just published a lovely article about #BBCFirstHomo, a @ukri.org-sponsored play by Inkbrew based on my research on the first British doc about homosexuality. Catch the tour during @lgbthm.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/stage/2026/j...

Congratulations to Meghann Swann, who won our International Security Postgraduate Dissertation Prize for her project 'Knowing When to Duck: Situational Awareness and the Embodied Labours of Everyday Security'. Meg recently graduated from IRPH's International Security MA programme.

Another great entry in the @lborouniversity.bsky.social's 'What Our Students Say' pages! Below, Samara Hackett (graduated 2025) talks about her time studying History and International Relations. 'Loughborough has such a large student community that you are almost guaranteed to find people for you.'

📢 CALL FOR ABSTRACTS Pacifism and Nonviolence: Questioning IR's Theories, Practices and Epistemologies New section at EISA Pan-European Conference 📍 Lisbon 📅 1-4 September 2026 As violent crises intensify globally, how can pacifist and nonviolent approaches reshape International Relations?

My 'The virtues of cultivated meat' is now available OPEN ACCESS in the Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics. I make a case for cultivated meat using virtue ethics, complementing existing cases drawing upon consequentialism or deontology.

New on the university website: Lia Smith (graduated 2025) describes studying History in IRPH. 'The teaching and facilities at Loughborough are excellent. The new Morag Bell Building is a great place to study. It is away from the busy parts of campus and your lecturers are close by.'

A final 'What Our Students Say' page before the university closes until the new year: Theo Gilbert (who graduated in 2025) tells us about his experiences studying Politics. 'I've loved meeting so many new people, especially people in IRPH.' www.lboro.ac.uk/study/underg...

Are you looking for a new podcast for the festive period? New from @telegraph.co.uk, Murder in the Masai Mara explores the case of Julie Ward, who was murdered in 1988. Episode 5 features IRPH's own Dr Poppy Cullen, Senior Lecturer in International History.

Next up in our new 'What Our Students Say' pages, Holli Suragh (graduated 2025) talks about her experiences studying Politics and International Relations. 'Be inquisitive, talk, learn and never feel silly about speaking up.' www.lboro.ac.uk/study/underg...

New profiles from IRPH students are being published on 'What Our Students Say' pages of the Loughborough University website. First up, Gwendia Li (graduated 2025) talks about her experiences studying politics, philosophy, and economics in IRPH.

Huge congratulations to @peteryeandle.bsky.social and the IRPH admin team who won the two 'Going the Extra Mile' awards at yesterday's School of Social Sciences and Humanities awards. Here in IRPH, we are proud of the support that our staff offer to students and to each other.

The skies over Loughborough station this morning.

IRPH's Thoralf Klein recently represented @lborouniversity.bsky.social at the 9th Annual Conference of the UK-China Humanities Alliance for Higher Education at Macau University of Science and Technology. This year’s conference theme was Global Humanities Research and Education in the Age of AI.

🏅 Today I received this award. Lots has happened in 15 years. Overall I'm rather proud to be working @irph.bsky.social @lborouniversity.bsky.social, delighted to have so many great colleagues, & looking fwd to the hopefully many years to come. Thanks to all who shared part of the journey so far.

New from our very own Guy Aitchison (writing with Saladin Meckled-Garcia). Is 'naming and shaming' ever a punishment that fits the crime? Perhaps the UK government thinks so, given its proposals in the new Sentencing Bill. But Aitchison and Meckled-Garcia are less sure...

This week, students from the Part B module Politics of Development (convened by @giuliapiccolino.bsky.social) displayed their work at the module's poster session. Keep your eyes open for some of these posters appearing around the department in the near future!

Huge congratulations to IRPH's Dr Stavros Kartsonas, who passed his PhD viva yesterday! His thesis, Psychopolitics & Resistance: The Case of SYRIZA during the Greek Crisis, was supervised by Guy Aitchison and @hilaryrobinson.bsky.social, and examined by Ruth Kinna and Angela Dimitrakaki.

Reminder: If you might like to apply for a Leverhulme postdoc working with me (or any of my @irph.bsky.social colleagues) the deadline for the internal competition is one week today. Reach out ASAP!

Today is World Philosophy Day! Philosophy is a big part of what we do here in IRPH (and not just on our PPE degree). One reason for this is that training in philosophy makes us into better thinkers. This is important in every discipline. #philosophy #worldphilosophyday #philsky

What have you been up to since graduation? If you graduated from IRPH at Loughborough between May and July 2024, we need you! You’ll have received an email about the Graduate Outcomes Survey. Check your inbox and take part by 30th November: make your voice count!

IRPH's Alex Christoyannopoulos is speaking today at a conference organised by the French Green Party in the French Senate. To learn more about the topic, see his paper 'Questioning the warist orthodoxy: pacifist critical reflections on Russia's invasion of Ukraine', published earlier this year!

Yesterday, Professor Caroline Kennedy-Pipe told us about her 'island obsession' as part of the IRPH Research Seminars. Svalbard (Norway) and Bornholm (Denmark) provide fascinating cases for war studies scholarship, and 2025 geopolitics potentially make them more important than ever.