INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS SCHOLAR

Miguel A. Híjar-Chiapa

PhD Candidate in Political Science and International Relations
University of Southern California

International Relations Theory · International Political Economy · Political Theory

I am a Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Political Science and International Relations at the University of California, and currently serve as President of the Australian and New Zealand Studies Association of North America. Before joining USC, I was Assistant Professor of International Relations in the Department of Pacific Studies at the University of Guadalajara.

My research interests lie at the intersection of International Relations Theory, International Political Economy, and Political Theory. My work examines how power, order, and justice are constituted, defined, and contested in international society amidst rapid economic and technological change.

My dissertation, Unaccountable Power: The Strange Case of the Bank for International Settlements, supervised by Professor Manuel Castells, analyses the historical evolution of the BIS and its pivotal role in global financial governance. Drawing on the English School of International Relations and Network Society theory and informed by archival research and in-depth interviews, I examine how this sui generis, largely unaccountable institution has been able to acquire such an immensely powerful position and shape international financial rules without major political interference. This project contributes to theoretical debates on informal authority, international law, global finance, the politics of the global economy, and order and justice in world politics.

My research has appeared in The Journal of Indo Pacific Affairs and Rising Powers Quarterly as well as several peer-reviewed Routledge-edited volumes. My publications illustrate the evolution of my research agenda from Indo-Pacific regional security and Australian and New Zealand foreign policy to broader questions concerning the political and economic foundations of order and justice in international society.

I have more than a decade of experience teaching in higher education across several countries. I have taught undergraduate and graduate courses on International Relations, Comparative Politics, Political Theory, and Research Methods. As part of my commitment to an effective and inclusive pedagogy, I have undertaken training in the Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) methodology and I have a Certificate in Teaching through English in Higher Education from the University of Jyväskylä, Finland.