Hello and Welcome
I am a scholar, teacher, and writer drawn to the pulse of politics and the quiet textures of governance in China. I study how states secure, how people respond, and how emotion lingers in the architecture of power.
My work moves between theory and field, weaving legitimacy, nationalism, affect, and everyday life into a tapestry of security and resistance. I’m drawn to the subtle forces — narratives, silences, symbols — that govern not just bodies, but hearts.
I currently serve as Associate Lecturer at the University of St Andrews, where I also held a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship. I've taught at the Universities of Liverpool, Royal Holloway, and Leeds. My writing includes peer-reviewed articles, a monograph (also translated into German), and media commentary that bridges academic inquiry and public conversation.
Current Project
Terrorism in China: History, Present and Future
British Academy Monograph Series
It traces the evolving meanings of political violence from ancient times to the present.
Beginning with legendary assassins like Jing Ke, and moving through imperial anxieties, revolutionary sacrifice, and post-socialist securitisation, the book explores how ideas of terror, resistance, and legitimacy have shaped Chinese statecraft across time.
Alongside institutions and ideologies, it gives space to voices often silenced — including gendered forms of resistance and martyrdom, such as the life and death of Qiu Jin.
Looking ahead, the book considers the future of China's counter-terrorism agenda, especially through multilateral frameworks like the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, asking what kind of security world China is helping to build.