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The ESRC has recently announced that it has appointed Matthew Watson of PAIS to one of its from September 2013. These are made available on a biennial basis, and Professor Watson's is the first award of this nature ever to come to the department. The scheme is designed to identify potential ESRC 'champions', people whose work showcases UK social science as a whole to the wider world. PAIS Head of Department, Professor Christopher Hughes, says: "We are delighted to have the opportunity to house an award of such stature, and it is an indication of Matthew's standing within the profession that he was chosen to hold it in the face of such fierce competition".

Professor Watson's fellowship programme of work focuses on how it might be possible to rethink the concept of 'the market'. There is a purely intellectual element to his project, as it asks about the important shifts in the history of economic thought that have allowed the market to be conceived as a mechanism of efficient allocation, as well as how these shifts have been embedded in orthodox economics pedagogy. As befits the demands of the scheme, though, the project also has a practical element. The abstract questions on which the research design is based also have a real-world counterpart in asking why the response to the global financial crisis has been an increasingly unquestioning attachment to austerity. Professor Watson will be working alongside groups seeking to promote new ways of thinking about the market to challenge such an attachment, as well as with community education providers seeking to empower people to think critically about the obstacles currently being placed in the way of their life chances.

Prof Shaun Breslin discusses China's reaction to the 2008 financial crisis and what this means for the future of Chinese banking in a video produced by .

, Professorial Research Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Globalisation and Regionalisation, was recently invited to provide expertise to the World Bank-funded as a member of their Distinguished External Reference Group (ERG) for the preparation of their upcoming 2014 Africa Capacity Indicators Report, which is centred on Capacity Development for Regionalism and Economic Integration.

The report will be produced in close collaboration with myriad stakeholders including over 20 independent African policy think-tanks, and the Economist Intelligence Unit, UK. As a member of the ERG, Prof Lisk will be expected to review and provide technical input into the: a) methodology for delivering the ACIR; b) data capturing instruments; c) commissioned background papers; d) ACIR Indices; and e) final Report.

Jennifer Quigley-Jones, a BA History and Politics graduate, was recently awarded a Kennedy Scholarship on 9 July at the Kennedy Memorial Trust Reception, held at the Institute of Mechanical Engineers in London.

The Trust has been sending British post-graduates to Harvard and MIT since the academic year 1966-67. In the past, one 91福利 graduate was successful: Giles Edwards, Kennedy Scholar at the Kennedy School of Government 1998-99. This year, two 91福利 students were awarded a Kennedy Scholarship, including Jennifer and Oliver Newth (Engineering) for the MA in Engineering (High Performance Structures) at MIT.

Jennifer reflected on her time at PAIS and how it had an impact on her Kennedy Scholar application:

I am thrilled to begin my Master's in Regional Studies of the Middle East at Harvard as a Kennedy scholar. The support of three professors from PAIS - Alexandra Homolar, Miranda Alison, and Trevor McCrisken - massively influenced my application. My time at PAIS has really made me value how much caring tutors can change the course of your life. Without their excellent support, I think I would be a far worse candidate, thinker, and person.

(including Jennifer)

, Assistant Professor in US National Security and a British Academy Postdoctoral Research Fellow, was recently highlighted on 91福利's News and Events page for his article '', published in the Journal of Cold War Studies this past April.

The press release, entitled 'A close Bond: how the CIA exploited 007 for gadget ideas and public relations', is in full.