UC Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation

Cross-Border Repression in the Cameroon Anglophone Transnational Movement - IGCC

New on our blog, IGCC Dissertation Fellow Eliana Fonsah offers analysis on the transnational repression tactics employed by the authoritarian government of Cameroon, and the role that host country governments must play to protect diasporic activists: ucigcc.org/blog/cross-b...

Novels on Authoritarian Rule III - IGCC

Still rounding out your 2026 reading list? Check out the latest entry in our book review blog series from IGCC research director Steph Haggard and Matthew Draper and consider adding one of these five novels on authoritarian rule: ucigcc.org/blog/novels-...

Why a Populist Trump Administration Struck a Side Deal with the OECD - IGCC

The Trump administration has withdrawn from a number of international organizations, but a recent agreement with the OECD could indicate some hope of continued international cooperation for the U.S.

Read more from IGCC dissertation fellow Margaret Kenney: ucigcc.org/blog/why-a-p...

The Trump administration released their new National Security Strategy in November. New on our website, IGCC experts offer their analysis on the implications for the future of Japan-U.S. relations, China, Taiwan, and America's broader global alliances: ucigcc.org/collections/...

Defining martial law: Introducing the EmPower dataset - Anya Stewart, 2026 Martial law is widely used by governments around the world and yet remains poorly understood. In this article, I aim to expand what we know about the concept of...

The first solo-authored article by 2024-25 IGCC dissertation fellow Anya Stewart has been published in Conflict Management & Peace Science. In it, Anya offers an academic definition of martial law as well as a measurement strategy: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/....

China’s Hidden Quest to Win in Pulsed Power Fusion - IGCC In this policy brief, IGCC senior fellow Jimmy Goodrich analyzes China's systematic advancing and scaling of innovative fusion energy technologies, a strategic national imperative with implications fo...

In a new policy brief, IGCC senior fellow Jimmy Goodrich describes how China’s leading military and civilian research institutions are systematically advancing and scaling innovative fusion energy technologies: ucigcc.org/publication/...

The Trump Revolution—One Year Later - IGCC In January 2025, Talking Policy convened a group of five experts to consider what Donald Trump’s return to power in the United States might mean for America and for the world. In this episode, Talking...

New on IGCC's Talking Policy podcast, host Lindsay Shingler sits down with five UC experts to make sense of America’s evolving approach under the second Trump administration to the global economy, China, security, the environment, and the rule of law. Listen now: ucigcc.org/podcast/the-...

Venezuela Doesn’t Make a Chinese Intervention in Taiwan More Likely—Here’s Why - IGCC

Following the dramatic U.S. intervention in Venezuela earlier this month, some are concerned that a precedent may be set for China. For our blog, James Lee argues that the operation doesn't open the door for Beijing to move on Taiwan in the near future: ucigcc.org/blog/venezue...

Rethinking South Korea’s Failed Martial Law Declaration - IGCC The following was prepared for a conference held on December 3, 2025 at the National Assembly of Korea to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the failed declaration of martial law. Organized by th...

New on our blog, IGCC research director and @gpsucsd.bsky.social professor Stephan Haggard offers thoughts on the failed martial law declaration in South Korea about one year ago, and what it can tell us about threats to democratic governance around the world: ucigcc.org/blog/rethink...

Changing How Police View the Public: Lessons from the Philippines - IGCC

In the latest analysis on our blog, Dotan Haim, Matthew Nanes, and Nico Ravanilla examine an often overlooked aspect of community policing: how these initiatives affect police opinions of the public, rather than vice versa: ucigcc.org/blog/changin...

Regaining U.S. Nuclear Energy Dominance - IGCC The United States is losing its dominance in the nuclear export market, and with it, its ability to steer global non-proliferation and safety norms. This piece examines responses to recover this domin...

New on our blog, IGCC postdoc Dominic Brennan examines potential responses for the U.S. to regain dominance in the nuclear export market. A work-in-progress, we've published this analysis to crowdsource feedback as this work develops over the next year: ucigcc.org/blog/regaini...

IGCC Postdoc Adi Rao Talks Cyber, Wargaming, and Network Theory - IGCC In September, IGCC’s Postdoctoral Fellowship in Technology and International Security, now in its fifth year, welcomed four new fellows to Washington, D.C. where they are advancing research that creat...

Meet new IGCC postdoc Adi Rao! In this interview, Adi shares about his research on cyber espionage, how he uses game theory to teach students, and his love of Muay Thai: ucigcc.org/interview/ig...

Beijing Calls for “Extraordinary Measures” to Boost Tech Self-Sufficiency - IGCC

In a recent blog post, IGCC senior fellow Jimmy Goodrich unpacks Beijing's call for "extraordinary measures" to accelerate tech self-sufficiency: both what these measures might actually entail and how the language echoes earlier CCP political rhetoric: ucigcc.org/blog/beijing...

China’s Competitive Model for Strategic Science, Technology, and Innovation Development - IGCC In this report, IGCC director and UC San Diego professor Tai Ming Cheung examines the key features of China's strategic science, technology, and innovation development model known as SAMI (Strong Auth...

In a new report, IGCC director and @gpsucsd.bsky.social professor Tai Ming Cheung examines the key features of China’s strategic Strong Authoritarian Mobilization and Innovation development model for science and technology:
ucigcc.org/publication/...

Overseas Voting Isn’t the Only Way Migration Affects Democracy - IGCC

In a recent IGCC blog post, Margaret Peters, a professor of political science at UCLA, expands on the impacts that migrants can have on the democracies in their home countries, beyond simply overseas voting. Read her full analysis here: ucigcc.org/blog/oversea...

Five Questions on Indian Foreign Policy with Achyuta Adhvaryu - IGCC India is the most populous nation, largest democracy, and fastest growing major economy in the world. But it’s not yet a global superpower, and the nation’s diplomatic service is only about the size o...

On the @ucigcc.bsky.social blog, Professor Achyuta Adhvaryu discusses recent developments in India's relationships with China and the U.S. and how New Delhi sees its place within a changing world.

🔗 Read "Five Questions on Indian Foreign Policy with Achyuta Adhvaryu": ow.ly/HILQ50XqJco

Overcoming Obstruction and Reimagining the Planetary Climate System at COP30 - IGCC

New on our blog, 2025-26 IGCC dissertation fellow Benjamin Weinger (UC Los Angeles) offers analysis on COP30—a pivotal moment for the UN accelerate implementation, restore trust, and reset the multilateral climate process: ucigcc.org/blog/overcom...

Novels on Authoritarian Rule II - IGCC

In a new blog post, IGCC research director Stephan Haggard shares five more novels that help to illuminate the realities of autocratic rule. Read the list now: ucigcc.org/blog/novels-...

IGCC Postdoc Jung Jae Kwon Talks War, Peace, and Nukes - IGCC In September, IGCC’s Postdoctoral Fellowship in Technology and International Security, now in its fifth year, welcomed four new fellows to Washington, D.C. where they are advancing research that creat...

Meet new IGCC postdoc Jung Jae Kwon! In this interview, Jung Jae discusses his research on how nonnuclear-armed allies defend against nuclear threats, his experience as a peacekeeper in South Sudan, and his travels through China: bit.ly/4oVjBQS

Oceans of Ambition: The Rise of China’s Blue Science - IGCC

Beijing’s growing investment in ocean research is reshaping global marine science and geopolitics alike. Read analysis about the scale and impact of China's ocean science from IGCC senior fellow Jimmy Goodrich new on our blog: ucigcc.org/blog/oceans-...

Five Questions on What History Can Teach Us About Today’s Nuclear World - IGCC China’s growing nuclear arsenal, the decline of the international arms control regime, and the rise of militarized conflict across the world are creating new nuclear risks. Can lessons from past nucle...

How can lessons from the past help us create a more secure nuclear future? Sarah Bidgood, a 2024-26 IGCC postdoctoral fellow, speaks with us about what her archival work on historic nuclear crises can tell us about the potential for nuclear-armed conflict today: bit.ly/4pfg6VJ

Continuity and a Military Purge at China’s Fourth Communist Party Plenum - IGCC

On the heels of China's fourth plenum meeting, IGCC director Tai Ming Cheung offers analysis of a recent CCP communiqué that reveals some interesting clues to Beijing's priorities for economic and security development plan through 2030. New on our blog: ucigcc.org/blog/continu...

American Party Politics and the Crisis of Representation - IGCC The United States, like few other advanced democracies, has a deeply entrenched two-party system. In recent years, as the two parties have drifted further and further apart, gridlock has intensified i...

In a new episode of Talking Policy, Georgia Kernell of UCLA joins host Lindsay Shingler for a comparative look at the U.S. political system, and how America's deeply entrenched two-party system impacts both policy and political participation. Listen now: bit.ly/4qGa2qr

Chinese Overcapacity Looms Over the APEC Summit - IGCC

At the 2025 APEC Summit in South Korea, the issue of "overcapacity"—the imbalance between China’s vast production and the world’s ability or willingness to absorb it—looms large over the region. Read the latest analysis from IGCC expert Beije Tang: bit.ly/434G4ma

IGCC Postdoc Dominic Brennan Talks Nuclear Reactors, Algorithms, and Emissions - IGCC In September, IGCC’s Postdoctoral Fellowship in Technology and International Security, now in its fifth year, welcomed four new fellows to Washington, D.C. where they are advancing research that creat...

Meet new IGCC postdoc Dominic Brennan! In this interview, Dom discusses his research on nuclear algorithms, his transition from the hard sciences to policy, and his move from the UK to Washington, D.C. for this postdoctoral fellowship: ucigcc.org/interview/ig...

What Online Surveys Can Tell Us About Violence, Unrest, and Human Rights - IGCC In this working paper, Andrew Shaver, an assistant professor at UC Merced, and a team of researchers from the Political Violence Lab, draw conclusions based on surveys they ran in Bangladesh and Pakis...

In the latest IGCC working paper, Andrew Shaver of UC Merced and a team of researchers at the Political Violence Lab share conclusions from online surveys in Bangladesh and Pakistan that helped uncover otherwise-unreported instances of political violence and human rights violations: bit.ly/3WrjlwH

Can Digital Tech Actually Help Save Democracy? - IGCC

In a recent IGCC blog post, UC Riverside professor Kevin Esterling details a platform that seeks to use AI and algorithmic tools to enhance the democratic process in an era where digital tech is often an oppositional force to democratic civil discourse: ucigcc.org/blog/can-dig...

IGCC Podcast Miniseries Wins Gold at the Davey Awards - IGCC

IGCC is delighted to share that our podcast miniseries, Democracy and Its Discontents, has won Gold at the 2025 Davey Awards in the category for Podcast Series, Government & Political. Learn more about the series, and this wonderful recognition, here: bit.ly/4qd7WOG

IGCC is pleased to welcome two new members and a new chair to our Steering Committee! Composed of faculty representatives from all ten UC campuses and two national labs, the committee advises IGCC leadership, serves as campus liaisons, and awards IGCC fellowships and grants.

China unveils sweeping rare-earth export controls to protect ‘national security’ Rules come ahead of expected meeting this month between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping

IGCC senior fellow Jimmy Goodrich was quoted in @financialtimes.com last week about China's sweeping rare-earth export controls: "If...the U.S. doesn’t respond strongly, Beijing could have complete control over the entire advanced semiconductor supply chain."

Read more: on.ft.com/4pZzRl4