Article
Minilateralism and effective multilateralism in the global nuclear order
Dee M (2024) Minilateralism and effective multilateralism in the global nuclear order. Contemporary Security Policy. https://doi.org/10.1080/13523260.2024.2373658
Contact details
- Email megan.dee@stir.ac.uk
- Telephone+44 (0)1786 466213
About me
I am a Senior Lecturer in International Politics at the University of Stirling . I take a keen interest in all things international politics, from big picture thinking around the nature of world order, great powers and polarity, to the finer details of EU politics and the particulars of global nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament efforts. My research interests specifically center on the power, politics and performance of actors within international organisations, specialising particularly on the EU, and with special attention to the fields of nuclear non-proliferation/disarmament and trade. I have published extensively on EU performance in multilateral negotiations, particularly within the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty review negotiations and the WTO's multilateral trade negotiations. I am also an occasional media commentator on topics such as international security, diplomacy, foreign policy, trade negotiations, and the EU.
Prior to joining Stirling I was a post-doctoral research fellow at the Centre for Globalisation and Regionalisation at the University of Warwick where I worked on the FP-7 funded project Global Reordering: Evolution through European Networks (GR:EEN). My PhD is from the University of Glasgow.
My research is closely mirrored in my teaching where I aim to bring the outside international context into the classroom wherever possible through active learning methods like simulations or role-play exercises. I also advocate a strong employability focus in my teaching, with emphasis on the transferable skills helpful to a competitive international politics job market. In 2019 I received a student nominated RATE runner-up award for Innovation in Online Teaching as well as a Teaching Impact Award from the University of Stirling for my work on active learning simulations to mimic real world international negotiations.
My research broadly addresses international performance, negotiation, and diplomacy in international politics. My ongoing research agenda concerns agency, role, performance, group dynamics and state and non-state actor networks within multilateral negotiation contexts, with special focus on global nuclear politics and diplomacy.
My current research is particularly focused on minilateral group dynamics in the global nuclear order, effective multilateralism in global nuclear weapons governance, and nuclear responsibility as practice.
I also take a keen interest in the EU as a Global Actor, global trade politics, including the politics of the multilateral trading system and WTO, multilateral trade negotiations, and Brexit.
Award
Best Paper Prize, European Foreign Affairs Review
Best Paper Prize for the Paper 'The EU's Performance in the 2015 NPT Review Conference: What went wrong'
Teaching Impact Award
Awarded by the University of Stirling for excellence in teaching innovation.
Recognising and Advancing Teaching Excellence (RATE) Runner-Up Award for Innovation in Online Teaching
Event / Presentation
Clubs, Coalitions, and Contradictions in the Global Nuclear Order
Global Nuclear Order Working Group panel, British International Studies Association Conference, Glasgow, June 2023.
Brexit and the (Dis)United Kingdom
Roundtable hosted by the Centre for European and Transatlantic Studies at the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA on 18 May 2021.
The NPT at 50
https://www.bisa.ac.uk/…rtual-roundtable
British International Studies Association virtual roundtable convened 10 June 2020.
WMD from a Geopolitical Perspective
https://www.asser.nl/education-events/events/?id=4248
Invited guest lecturer for the T.M.C Asser Institute's Disarmament and Non-Proliferation of WMD Training Programme, 19-23 September 2022 in the The Hague, Netherlands.
External Examiners and Validations
External Examiner, European and International Politics MSc, University of Stirling
University of Edinburgh
https://www.ed.ac.uk/…site/view&id=303
Other Academic Activities
P5 Young Professionals Network on Strategic Affairs (P5-YPN)
The P5-Young Professionals Network on Strategic Affairs (P5-YPN) aims to increase long-term interactions and enhance channels of communication between young professionals in the strategic communities of the P5 members to build mutual understanding of respective strategic cultures and contribute to the overarching objective of strategic risk reduction. The network is composed of 15 researchers and academics. Members of the network operate with no official mandate from the P5 allowing them to engage in exchanges of ideas and to present original research findings and analytic work at regular meetings of the network.
Other Project
Working Group on Nuclear Disarmament Negotiations
https://www.uu.se/alvamyrdalcentre/research
Professional membership
British International Studies Association
www.bisa.ac.uk
Political Studies Association
www.psa.ac.uk
The European Network of Independent Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Think Tanks
https://www.nonproliferation.eu/
Trade and Public Policy Network
https://tappnetwork.org/
Professional qualification
Fellow, UK Higher Education Academy (HEA)
Postgraduate Certificate Learning and Teaching in Higher Education
University Contribution
Member of Faculty of Arts and Humanities Ethics Committee
Member of Faculty of Arts and Humanities Athena Swan Working Group
Programme Director, International Politics
https://www.stir.ac.uk/…tional-politics/
Research projects (1)
Networking nuclear research in Scotland and the UK
PI: Dr Megan Dee
Funded by: The Scottish Council on Global Affairs
–
Outputs (25)
Authored Book
Understanding International Politics: the student toolkit
Dee M (2024) Understanding International Politics: the student toolkit. London: Bloomsbury. https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/understanding-international-politics-9781350381650/
Project Report
Networking nuclear research in Scotland and the UK
Dee M, Crilley R & Intropido S (2024) Networking nuclear research in Scotland and the UK. The Scottish Council on Global Affairs. Glasgow. https://scga.scot/2024/10/23/scga-report-networking-nuclear-research-in-scotland-and-the-uk/
Article
Schapper A & Dee M (2024) Super-Networks Shaping International Agreements: Comparing the Climate Change and Nuclear Weapons Arenas. International Studies Quarterly, 68 (1), Art. No.: sqad105. https://doi.org/10.1093/isq/sqad105
Video
Group Dynamics and Interplay in UN Disarmament Forums
Dee M (2023) Group Dynamics and Interplay in UN Disarmament Forums. Faculti [Video interview] 14.04.2023. https://faculti.net/group-dynamics-and-interplay-in-un-disarmament-forums/
Article
Between role adaptation and contestation: the UK’s status as a nuclear weapon state after Brexit
Dee M & Kienzle B (2023) Between role adaptation and contestation: the UK’s status as a nuclear weapon state after Brexit. International Politics. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41311-023-00463-7
Article
EU orchestration in the nuclear weapons regime complex
Dee M (2023) EU orchestration in the nuclear weapons regime complex. Politics and Governance, 11 (2). https://doi.org/10.17645/pag.v11i2.6323
Book Chapter
Group Dynamics and Interplay in UN Disarmament Forums
Dee M (2020) Group Dynamics and Interplay in UN Disarmament Forums. In: Laatikainen K & Smith K (eds.) Group Politics in UN Multilateralism. Diplomatic Studies, 16. Leiden: Brill | Nijhoff, pp. 177-195. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004384446_011
Newspaper / Magazine
NATO meeting: solidarity reinforced despite uncomfortable time for alliance to be in the spotlight
Dee M (2019) NATO meeting: solidarity reinforced despite uncomfortable time for alliance to be in the spotlight. The Conversation. 04.12.2019.
Newspaper / Magazine
Nehring H & Dee M (2019) We war-gamed an escalation of the Ukraine-Russia crisis - here's what it taught us about the real world. The Conversation. 20.03.2019.
Newspaper / Magazine
US-UK 'Special Relationship is under threat
Dee M (2018) US-UK 'Special Relationship is under threat. The Scotsman. 13.07.2018. https://www.scotsman.com/news/opinion/megan-dee-us-uk-special-relationship-is-under-threat-1-4768114#comments-area
Website Content
“Special relationship” showmanship to be expected – but contentious issues brew
Dee M (2018) “Special relationship” showmanship to be expected – but contentious issues brew. University of Stirling news blog [Blog Post] 13.07.2018. https://blog.stir.ac.uk/category/latest/
Website Content
Getting to Yes: Media training to dispel the fear
Dee M (2018) Getting to Yes: Media training to dispel the fear. University of Stirling Research and Innovation Blog [Blog post] 27.03.2018. https://researchandinnovationblog.stir.ac.uk/2018/03/27/getting-to-yes-media-training-to-dispel-the-fear/
Article
Group interplay and dynamics in UN Disarmament Forums: In Search of Consensus
Dee M (2017) Group interplay and dynamics in UN Disarmament Forums: In Search of Consensus. Hague Journal of Diplomacy, 12 (2-3), pp. 158-177. https://doi.org/10.1163/1871191X-12341364
Book Chapter
The EU in UN Disarmament Forums
Dee M (2017) The EU in UN Disarmament Forums. In: Blavoukos S & Bourantonis D (eds.) The EU in UN Politics: Actors, Processes and Performances. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 165-186. http://www.palgrave.com/br/book/9781349951512
Book Chapter
Dee M (2017) Standing together or doing the splits? Evaluating European Union Performance in the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty Review Negotiations. In: Tonra B, Young A & Whitman R (eds.) Foreign Policy of the European Union Volume 3: Core Foreign Policies. SAGE Library of International Relations. London: SAGE. https://uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/foreign-policy-of-the-european-union-4v/book246135#contents
Article
UK Diplomacy at the UN after BREXIT: Challenges and Opportunities
Dee M & Smith KE (2017) UK Diplomacy at the UN after BREXIT: Challenges and Opportunities. British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 19 (3), pp. 527-542. https://doi.org/10.1177/1369148117710208
Website Content
Post-Brexit diplomacy: Can the UK hope to exert leverage at the UN without recourse to the EU?
Dee M & Smith KE (2017) Post-Brexit diplomacy: Can the UK hope to exert leverage at the UN without recourse to the EU?. LSE British Politics and Policy, 03.08.2017. http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/post-brexit-diplomacy-at-the-un/
Other
Dee M (2016) Written evidence to the House of Lords International Relations Committee Inquiry into UK Priorities for the new UN Secretary General. Written evidence to the House of Lords International Relations Committee Inquiry into UK Priorities for the new UN Secretary General [Written Evidence] UK Parliament.
Book Chapter
The European Union and its performance in the NPT negotiations: Consistency, Change and Challenges
Dee M (2015) The European Union and its performance in the NPT negotiations: Consistency, Change and Challenges. In: Blavoukos S, Bourantonis D & Portela C (eds.) The EU and the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons: Strategies, Policies, Actions. The European Union in International Affairs. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, pp. 77-94. http://www.palgrave.com/br/book/9781137378439
Authored Book
The European Union in a Multipolar World: World Trade, global governance and the case of the WTO
Dee M (2015) The European Union in a Multipolar World: World Trade, global governance and the case of the WTO. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. http://www.palgrave.com/gb/book/9781137434197; https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137434203
Article
The EU's performance in the 2015 NPT Review Conference: What went wrong
Dee M (2015) The EU's performance in the 2015 NPT Review Conference: What went wrong. European Foreign Affairs Review, 20 (4), pp. 591-608. http://www.kluwerlawonline.com/abstract.php?area=Journals&id=EERR2015047
Article
Dee M (2015) The EU's multilateralist combat against the proliferation of WMD in the NPT: mirroring the Grand Bargain. European Security, 24 (1), pp. 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1080/09662839.2014.948864
Article
Dee M (2012) Standing together or Doing the Splits? Evaluating European Union Performance in the Nuclear non-Proliferation Treaty Review Negotiations. European Foreign Affairs Review, 12 (2) p. 211. https://www.kluwerlawonline.com/abstract.php?area=Journals&id=EERR2012021
Article
Dee M (2012) Explaining European Union Performance in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference: Limited ambitions but pragmatic positioning. UNISCI Journal, DP 30, pp. 11-26. https://www.ucm.es/data/cont/media/www/pag-72491/UNISCI%20DP%2030%20-%20DEE.pdf
Teaching
I am the Learning and Teaching Officer (LTO) for the Division of History, Heritage and Politics. I am a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA).
I teach the following modules:
Teaching
ICCPP26 (International Negotiation)
This module gives students a critical understanding of how conflict and dispute in the international arena is managed through the process and politics of international negotiation. Students will gain detailed insight into the board, players, stakes and moves of international negotiation and consider the ‘game’ of international negotiation across a variety of negotiation contexts and policy fields. Students will have an opportunity to explore the latest developments in current international negotiation, including through a practical simulation exercise, as well as the challenges now facing diplomacy, negotiation and decision-making in today’s contemporary world.
POLU9EX (The EU in International Politics)
This module engages students to evaluate the role, power and performance of the European Union in the international system. Students will explore how international relations theories can help explain the power and position of the EU as a global actor and empirically engage with the EU as an actor across diverse policy fields. Students will be able to critically analyse the EU’s exercise of global influence and apply that knowledge in evaluating the challenges the EU continues to face in a state-dominated system. In taking this module students will have the opportunity to study this unique global actor at one of the most challenging periods in its history – covering not just the BREXIT negotiations but the implications of that decision for the EU moving forward.
POLU9IN (International Negotiation)
This module gives students a critical understanding of how conflict and dispute in the international arena is managed through the process and politics of international negotiation. Students will gain detailed insight into the board, players, stakes and moves of international negotiation and consider the ‘game’ of international negotiation across a variety of negotiation contexts and policy fields. Students will have an opportunity to explore the latest developments in current international negotiation, including through a practical simulation exercise, as well as the challenges now facing diplomacy, negotiation and decision-making in today’s contemporary world.
POLU9RM (Research Methods in Politics)
This team-taught module prepares students for undertaking a dissertation in Politics, International Politics or PPE. Students are introduced to research design, the literature review, and qualitative and quantitative approaches to analysing data.
POLU9TC (The EU in Times of Crisis)
This module engages you with the theory and practice of EU (dis)integration and decision-making in times of crisis. You will learn about the history of European integration, the crises that have shaped the EU’s development as an institution and actor, and the politics of crisis currently shaping EU decision-making. This module thus takes ‘crisis’ as a core point of focus. It considers how crisis has been addressed within the wider discipline of international politics, and how multiple crises ranging from the financial to political to legitimacy crises, have explicitly impacted the EU. Through case study analyses, you will critically evaluate the EU’s response to crisis across policy fields and issue areas ranging from finance, trade, migration, security, and the contentions surrounding the EU’s democratic deficit.
POLU9X3 (Understanding International Politics)
This module offers an introduction to the theories, concepts, actors, and issues that pervade the analysis and understanding of international politics in the contemporary world. The module begins by familiarising students with the mainstream international relations theories (realism, liberalism, constructivism), as well as core concepts such as power, agency, sovereignty and global governance. Students then turn their focus to global actors and the interactions of the major powers, the role of international organisations and international financial institutions, and non-state actors. After that students will address the world’s most pressing global issues facing today’s global actors including poverty and development, nuclear non-proliferation, environmental protection, and humanitarian intervention. It is a core aim of this module is to develop in students an appreciation of the dynamics of international politics; a mastery of basic concepts and approaches used in the analysis of international affairs as a precursor to more advanced study of international relations theory and practice; the ability to review and critique professional analysts of foreign affairs; and a comprehension of the motives behind and arguments used to explain actor behaviour in the international system.