Dr Catherine Charrett, BA (British Columbia), MSc (LSE), PhD (Aberystwyth University)

Profile

Dr. Catherine Charrett worked as an Associate Lecturer in the Department of History and Politics, University of Chichester, where she convened modules on Conflict in the Middle East and Research Methods in Politics and IR.  Dr. Charrett completed a PhD in the Department of International Politics at Aberystwyth University (2010-2014).  The topic of her doctoral project was EU-Hamas relations following the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections.  This research continued work conducted at the International Catalan Institute for Peace in Barcelona, where Catherine worked as a programme co-ordinator (2009-2010).  Prior to this Catherine completed a Masters in International Relations at the London School of Economics (2007-2008).  During this time Catherine volunteered with the Millennium Journal of International Studies. Catherine completed a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and Political Science at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada (2002-2006).   

Dr. Charrett tweets at @catawinnie and blogs at https://catacharrett.tumblr.com

Undergraduate Teaching

POL365 The Politics of the Post-Colonial Middle East

POL244 The International Politics of the Developing World

Postgraduate Teaching

POLM036 Qualitative and Quantitative Research Methods

Research

Research Interests:

Dr. Charrett’s research interests include Middle East studies, security studies, terrorism studies, gender politics, performance studies and queer theory.  Dr. Charrett’s doctoral research explored the EU’s response to Hamas’s success in the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections.  This work involved fieldwork in the Middle East and in Brussels, Belgium. Dr. Charrett’s work continues to focus on the Middle East and on Palestinian-Israeli relations more specifically.

Dr. Charrett’s work is interdisciplinary.  She worked closely with the Department of Theatre, Film and Television Studies during her time at Aberystwyth University.  Dr. Charrett curated a performance based on the findings from of her doctoral research, which was available for an academic and community wide audience.  

Catherine is an Early Career Research Fellow with the Independent Social Research Foundation  (2018-2019), whose  project investigates the networks that form around state security technologies in the European Union’s engagement with Israel and Palestine.  Using a gendered based critique it observes how the circulation and joint development of different technologies are performative of different orders of masculinity and sovereignty.  Catherine conducted on-site empirical research and developed a performance piece based on her findings.  The performance piece has been shown in academic, theatre, policy and community spaces, allowing audiences to observe and engage with transformed uses of security technologies through the strategic practices of drag performance.

 

Examples of research funding:

Dr. Charrett’s PhD was fully funded under the Aberystwyth Postgraduate Research Studentship scheme provided by Aberystwyth University.  Dr. Charrett’s Masters was partially funded by the London School of Economics, Graduate Merit Award.

Dr. Charrett has been awarded an Independent Social Research Foundation grant to research "Performing technologies in EU, Israeli and Palestinian security cooperation".

Publications

Publications:

Books 

• Performing Politics: Hamas, the EU and the 2006 Palestinian Elections. Routledge 2019. 

Articles

•  “Ritualised Securitisation: The EU’s failed response to Hamas’s success.” European Journal of International Relations.doi:10.1177/1354066118763506. Published 21 March, 2018. 
• “Diplomacy in drag and Queer IR Art: Reflections on the performance ‘Sipping Toffee with Hamas in Brussels.” Review of International Studies.  doi.org/10.1017/S0260210518000451. Published 16 November, 2018.   
• “Performative writing as a technology of change in Security Studies.” Critical Studies on Security.  Special Issue, “Messy Security: Aesthetics, Contingency, Discomfort.”Submitted 1 December, 2018. 

Book chapters

• “Empire” in The Oxford Handbook of Politics and Performance.  Edited by Shirin M Rai, Milija Gluhovic, Silvija Jestrovic and Michael Saward. Forthcoming, Oxford University Press 2019.    
• “Performing with International Relations Research.” In Critical Methods in Studying World Politics: Creativity and Transformation. Edited by Erzsebet Strausz, Shine Choi and Anna Selmeczzi. Forthcoming, Routledge 2019.  

 

Interdisciplinary projects:

“Politics in Drag: Sipping Toffee with Hamas in Brussels.”  45-minute solo performance.  Original performance, Aberystwyth Arts Centre, Aberystwyth, Wales, 23 May, 2014.

Subsequent performances:

The ShowRoom, Chichester, 13 April, 2016. 

Conflict, Security and Development programme, Department of War Studies, King’s College London, 8 February, 2016.

Popular Culture and World Politics 8th Annual Conference, University of Westminster, 20-21 November, 2015.

The Centre for the Study of Democracy, Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Westminster, 22 April, 2015.

Critical Security Studies programme, University of Warwick, 13 March, 2015.