Professor Roland Bleiker
Professor

Roland Bleiker

Email: 
Phone: 
+61 7 336 51068

Background

Roland is Professor of International Relations and Coordinator of the Visual Politics Research Program. His research explores how images and emotions shape political phenomena, including humanitarianism, security, peacebuilding, protest movements and the conflict in Korea. Books include Visual Global Politics (Routledge, 2018); Aesthetics and World Politics (Palgrave, 2009/2012); Divided Korea: Toward a Culture of Reconciliation (University of Minnesota Press, 2005/2008) and Popular Dissent, Human Agency and Global Politics (CUP, 2000).

Roland’s main current research project is an interdisciplinary ARC Linkage collaboration (2022-2026) on The Politics and Ethics of Visualising Humanitarian Crises. The project involves eight researchers and the World Press Photo Foundation, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Australian Red Cross and Médecins Sans Frontières.

Roland grew up in Zürich, Switzerland, where he was educated and worked as a lawyer. He studied international relations in Paris, Seoul, Toronto, Vancouver and Canberra. Roland also worked for two years in a Swiss diplomatic mission in the Korean DMZ and held visiting affiliations at Harvard, Cambridge, Humboldt, Tampere, Yonsei and Pusan National University as well as the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague. He is a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia.

Further informatin can be found on Roland''s personal website:

For an in-person or zoom appointment book here: https://calendly.com/bleiker

Selection of Recent Publications

“Decolonising Affect" Cooperation and Conflict (2024)

“Un-Disciplining the International” Alternatives: Local, Global, Political (2023)

"Visualizing International Relations” Journal of Visual Political Communication, 10,(2023

"Visual Violence" Interview with Brad Evans, Los Angeles Review of Books, 3 Jan 2022.

Availability

Professor Roland Bleiker is:
Available for supervision
Media expert

Fields of research

Government and politics of Asia and the Pacific Human Society International relations Language, Communication and Culture Political science

Qualifications

  • Bachelor of Arts, University of Toronto
  • Masters (Coursework), The University of British Columbia
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Australian National University

Research interests

  • International Relations: Visual Politics and Emotions

    Theories of International Relations. How images and emotions shape political phenomena, including security, diplomacy and humanitarian crises.

  • Peace and Conflict Studies

    Conflict resolution in societies divided by trauma. Transnational social movements and the conceptualisation of political change. Art and literature as sources of political transformation.

  • Politics and Security in Korea

    Security and reconciliation on the Korean peninsula, including policy-relevant debates.

Research impacts

Much of my work has revolved around combining theory and practice. I embark on conceptual inquires to rethink entrenched political dillemas. At the moment my main practice-oriented reserach is a four year collaborative project on The Politics and Ethics of Visualising Humanitarian Crises. Funded through an ARC Linkage Grant (2022-2025) this project aims to draw on the power of images to transform practices and policies of aid. In particular, the project develops – and tests - alternative visual strategies that depict humanitarian crises in ways that encourage compassion for victims without entrenching problematic stereotypes. We work with four prominent Partner Organisations that are at the forefront of humanitarian and photojournalistic work: The World Press Photo Foundation, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Australian Red Cross and Médecins Sans Frontières. The project team consists of myself and five other Chief Investigators: A/Prof Emma Hutchison, from the School of Political Science and International Studies; Prof Matthew Hornsey and Dr Cassandra Chapman from the UQ Business School, as well as A/Prof Sana Nakata from the University of Melbourne and Prof Bina D’Costa from the Australian National University. Involved as well are two Partner Investigators: Prof Fiona Terry, Head of Research at the ICRC, and Prof David Campbell, formerly Director of Communication at World Press Photo and now with The VII Foundation.

Search Professor Roland Bleiker’s works on UQ eSpace

192 works between 1993 and 2024
All (192) Journal Article (99) Book Chapter (77) Conference Publication (3) Book (8) Other Outputs (2) Edited Outputs (3)

81 - 100 of 192 works

2010

Book Chapter

Art and peacebuilding: How theatre transforms conflict in Sri Lanka.

Nilanjana Premaratna and Roland Bleiker (2010). Art and peacebuilding: How theatre transforms conflict in Sri Lanka.. Palgrave advances in peacebuilding: Critical developments and approaches. (pp. 376-391) edited by Oliver P. Richmond. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire, U.K. ; New York, U.S.A.: Palgrave Macmillan.

Art and peacebuilding: How theatre transforms conflict in Sri Lanka.

2009

Conference Publication

The Symbiosis of democracy and tragedy: Lost lessons from ancient greece

Chou, Mark and Bleiker, Roland (2009). The Symbiosis of democracy and tragedy: Lost lessons from ancient greece. doi: 10.1177/0305829809103238

The Symbiosis of democracy and tragedy: Lost lessons from ancient greece

2009

Book Chapter

Art after 9/11

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Art after 9/11. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 48-66) London: Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_3

Art after 9/11

2009

Book Chapter

Poetics and the Politics of Memory

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Poetics and the Politics of Memory. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 141-151) London: Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_9

Poetics and the Politics of Memory

2009

Book Chapter

Neorealist Claims in Light of Ancient Chinese Philosophy: The Cultural Dimension of International Theory

Bleiker, R. (2009). Neorealist Claims in Light of Ancient Chinese Philosophy: The Cultural Dimension of International Theory. Approaches to International Relations Volume IV Non-Western Approaches to International Relations. (pp. 104-124) edited by Chan, Stephen and Moore, Cerwyn. London: Sage Publications Ltd.

Neorealist Claims in Light of Ancient Chinese Philosophy: The Cultural Dimension of International Theory

2009

Journal Article

The Symbiosis of Democracy and Tragedy: Lost Lessons from Ancient Greece

Chou, M. and Bleiker, R. (2009). The Symbiosis of Democracy and Tragedy: Lost Lessons from Ancient Greece. Millennium - Journal of International Studies, 37 (3), 659-682. doi: 10.1177/0305829809103238

The Symbiosis of Democracy and Tragedy: Lost Lessons from Ancient Greece

2009

Book Chapter

Poetry after Auschwitz

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Poetry after Auschwitz. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 97-111) Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_6

Poetry after Auschwitz

2009

Book Chapter

Aesthetics and World Politics

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Aesthetics and World Politics. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 1-252) Palgrave Macmillan.

Aesthetics and World Politics

2009

Book Chapter

Introduction

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Introduction. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 1-17) London: Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_1

Introduction

2009

Journal Article

Civilization Exposed, review of Bowden, Brett, The Empire of Civilization: The Evolution of an Imperial Ideal

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Civilization Exposed, review of Bowden, Brett, The Empire of Civilization: The Evolution of an Imperial Ideal. Australian Book Review, 313 (July/Aug), 44-44.

Civilization Exposed, review of Bowden, Brett, The Empire of Civilization: The Evolution of an Imperial Ideal

2009

Book Chapter

Poetic World Politics

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Poetic World Politics. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 84-96) Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_5

Poetic World Politics

2009

Book Chapter

The Aesthetic Turn in International Political Theory

Bleiker, Roland (2009). The Aesthetic Turn in International Political Theory. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 18-47) London: Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_2

The Aesthetic Turn in International Political Theory

2009

Book Chapter

Come See the Blood in the Streets

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Come See the Blood in the Streets. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 128-140) Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_8

Come See the Blood in the Streets

2009

Book Chapter

Poetic Resistance to Cold War Politics

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Poetic Resistance to Cold War Politics. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 112-127) Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_7

Poetic Resistance to Cold War Politics

2009

Book Chapter

Conclusion

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Conclusion. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 171-188) London: Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_11

Conclusion

2009

Book Chapter

The Poetic Search for Identity and Community

Bleiker, Roland (2009). The Poetic Search for Identity and Community. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 152-170) Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_10

The Poetic Search for Identity and Community

2009

Book Chapter

Can we move beyond conflict?

Bleiker, Roland (2009). Can we move beyond conflict?. Global Politics: A new Introduction. (pp. 454-482) edited by Jenny Edkins and Maja Zehfuss. London and New York: Routledge.

Can we move beyond conflict?

2009

Book Chapter

The Sublime Nature of Global Politics

Bleiker, Roland (2009). The Sublime Nature of Global Politics. Rethinking Peace and Conflict Studies. (pp. 67-83) Palgrave Macmillan. doi: 10.1057/9780230244375_4

The Sublime Nature of Global Politics

2008

Journal Article

Emotional reconciliation: Reconstituting identity and community after trauma

Hutchison, Emma and Bleiker, Roland (2008). Emotional reconciliation: Reconstituting identity and community after trauma. European Journal of Social Theory, 11 (3), 385-403. doi: 10.1177/1368431008092569

Emotional reconciliation: Reconstituting identity and community after trauma

2008

Journal Article

Review of Myth, Protests and Struggle in Okinawa by Miyume Tanji

Bleiker, Roland (2008). Review of Myth, Protests and Struggle in Okinawa by Miyume Tanji. Australian Journal of Political Science, 43 (1), 161-162. doi: 10.1080/10361140701851954

Review of Myth, Protests and Struggle in Okinawa by Miyume Tanji

Current funding

  • 2022 - 2026
    Visualising humanitarian crises: transforming images and aid policy
    ARC Linkage Projects
    Open grant
  • 2021 - 2028
    Developing UQ as a central hub for nurturing the next generation of Korean Studies education, research and regional cooperation for Queensland and Northern Territory, Australia
    The Academy of Korean Studies
    Open grant

Past funding

  • 2011 - 2014
    How Images Shape Responses to Humanitarian Crises
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2011
    UQ Travel Awards Category 1 - Dr James Brassett
    UQ Travel Grants Scheme
    Open grant
  • 2011
    UQ Travel Awards Category 1 - Prof Iver B Neumann
    UQ Travel Grants Scheme
    Open grant
  • 2010
    UQ Travel Awards Category 1, David Campbell
    UQ Travel Grants Scheme
    Open grant
  • 2006 - 2007
    Mediating Across Difference: Asian and Oceanic Approaches to Security and Conflict
    The Japan Foundation, Sydney
    Open grant
  • 2005
    Towards an Aesthetics of Peace at at Time of War: Alternative Understandings and Responses to Global Terrorism
    University of Queensland Research Development Grants Scheme
    Open grant
  • 2001 - 2002
    From Confrontation to Cooperation in Korea: The Role of Identity in the Formation of Security Policy
    United States Institute of Peace
    Open grant
  • 1999
    Rethinking security and ethics in divided nations.
    UQ New Staff Research Start-Up Fund
    Open grant

Availability

Professor Roland Bleiker is:
Available for supervision

Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.

Available projects

Supervision history

Current supervision

Completed supervision

Enquiries

Contact Professor Roland Bleiker directly for media enquiries about:

  • Anti-globalisation critique
  • International relations and security
  • Korea - peace and security
  • New social movements
  • Peace and conflict issues
  • Peace and conflict studies
  • Peace and security in Korea

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