Ashok Swain

Ashok Swain is a Professor and Head of Department of the Department of Peace and Conflict Research. He is the UNESCO Chair on International Water Cooperation, and the Director of Research School of International Water Cooperation at Uppsala University. He is also the founding Editor-in-Chief of 'Environment and Security' journal, jointly published by Sage Publishing and Environmental Peacebuilding Association.

Ashok Swain is a Professor and Head of the Department of Peace and Conflict Research. He is also the UNESCO Chair of International Water Cooperation and the Director of the Research School of International Water Cooperation at Uppsala University, Sweden. He is also the founding Editor-in-Chief of 'Environment and Security' journal, jointly published by Sage Publishing and the Environmental Peacebuilding Association. He received his Ph.D. from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, in 1991, and since then, he has been teaching at Uppsala University. He has been a Mac Arthur Visiting Fellow at the University of Chicago, visiting fellow at UN Research Institute for Social Development, Geneva; and visiting professor at the University Witwatersrand, University of Science, Malaysia; the University of British Columbia, University of Maryland, Stanford University, McGill University, Tufts University and University of Natural Sciences and Life Sciences, Vienna. He has written extensively on new security challenges, water-sharing issues, environment, conflict and peace, and democratic development issues. His publications include ‘The Environmental Trap’ (Uppsala University, 1996), ‘International Fresh Water Resources: Conflict or Cooperation' (SEI, 1997), ‘Managing Water Conflict: Asia, Africa and the Middle East’ (Routledge, 2004), Struggle Against the State: Social Network and Protest Mobilization in India (Ashgate, 2010), ‘Understanding Emerging Security Challenges: Threats and Opportunities (Routledge, 2012), ‘Transboundary Water Management and the Climate Change Debate (Routledge, 2015), and ‘Emerging Security Threats in the Middle East: The Impact of Climate Change and Globalization’ (Rowman & Littlefield, 2016). He has also edited/co-edited several volumes, including ‘Education as Social Action’ (Palgrave MacMillan, 2005), ‘Islam and Violent Separatism’ (Kegan Paul, 2007), ‘Globalization and Challenges to Building Peace’ (Anthem, 2007), ‘The Democratization Project: Opportunities and Challenges’ (Anthem, 2009), ‘The Security-Development Nexus: Peace, Conflict and Development’ (Anthem 2013) and ‘Water Security’ 4 Volumes (Sage 2014), Routledge Handbook on Environmental Conflict and Peacebuilding (Routledge 2018), and Routledge Handbook on Middle East Security (Routledge 2019), Handbook of Security and the Environment' (Edward Elgar 2021) and ‘Routledge Handbook on Water and Development’ (Routledge 2023). He is presently writing a book 'Climate Security' (Sage 2024). He has also published nearly 150 journal articles and book chapters. He writes a weekly column, 'Right is Wrong' for Dubai-based Gulf News. He has worked as a consultant on environmental and development issues for various UN agencies, OSCE, NATO, EU, IISS, Arab League, OXFAM, and the Governments of Sweden, Netherlands, the UK, and Singapore.

Research Areas

Causes of Conflict, Conflict dynamics, Environment and conflict, Environmental Peacebuilding, Peace, peacebuilding and reconciliation, Psychological dimensions of conflicts, Security and foreign policy

Current Research

Emerging Security Challenges, Climate Change and Conflicts, Democracy and Sustainable Development, Transboundary Water Cooperation, Environmental Peacebuilding, Diaspora and Peace