FIFA World Cup 2026: Why Expansion Was the Right Decision
Authors Danyel Reiche, Tamir Bar-On The 2026 FIFA World Cup shows that expanding the tournament to 48 teams has made it more inclusive without reducing its competitiveness. The strong performances of several underdog nations demonstrate football’s transformation into a truly global and less Eurocentric game. After the completion of the group stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, we can conclude that the tournament has so far been defined not only by its biggest stars—with the list of goalscorers led by Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé, Vinícius Júnior, and Erling Haaland —but also by the outstanding performances of several […]
International Human Rights Day 2025
International Human Rights Day was observed worldwide on 10 December 2025. In recognition of this occasion, this blog highlights a recently acknowledged human right that directly concerns women and examines how this right is represented and upheld in today’s working world. In support of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 5 on gender equality, the 56th session of the UN Human Rights Council in 2024 adopted a resolution on Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM). The resolution calls on UN member states to respect, protect, and fulfil their obligation to create environments that enable women—who constitute more than half of the global […]
Conference Ambassador to Specialist Group Convenor: My Political Studies Journey
In early 2022, I was a keen Politics undergraduate in the third year of my degree. I was busy writing my dissertation on how the UK Parliament represents refugees; immersed in parliamentary literature, reading about select committees, institutionalism, and representation. The University of York’s Politics department reached out to the undergraduates about a volunteer role to assist with the PSA’s Annual Conference. They made it clear that, not only was I allowed to watch the conference presentations; they encouraged us to engage with them as well. I knew I had to apply. As the conference took place in the wake […]
Gbaraun Clan Marginalisation in Edo State, Nigeria – A Risk Too Brittle to Ignore!
On the International Day for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment in War and Armed Conflict, we are reminded that the consequences of conflict extend beyond human suffering; they also deeply affect ecosystems, resource governance, and community survival. In the Niger Delta, the aftermath of armed conflict continues to shape the lives of ex-combatants, particularly those excluded from formal reintegration programs. The Gbaraun Clan in Ovie South-West is one of the five ethnic groups forming the Ijaw communities in Edo State, Nigeria’s Niger Delta region. The Gbaraun people took part in the Niger Delta coastal insurgency and militancy against Nigerian […]
Why study politics? An international student’s perspective
Yelyzaveta Yeroshkina 25 September 2025 Why does anyone study politics? Why does someone decide to get a degree in political science? What motivates students to dedicate 3 or 4 years of their life to this? No doubt a degree in politics can lead to a range of interesting careers. And what about those who can’t escape politics? During my first year studying International Relations at Edinburgh University I was exposed to a new world I didn’t know existed. I learned that there are theories of international relations, where realism and liberalism appear as the two most favoured. The other thing I was exposed to was […]
Act Now for a Peaceful World: 21st September, International Day of Peace
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Dr. Aruni Samarakoon, University of Hull 18 September 2025 Capturing the ground reality of war violence in Gaza, Channel 4 has produced and screened “Kill Zone: Inside Gaza Dispatches” (2024). It tells the story of children, journalists, and doctors who are subjected to Israeli military violence. In 2011, the same Channel 4 produced a documentary on the Sri Lankan civil war, showing the everyday violence of the Sri Lankan government against the Tamil minority. The panel of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, established by the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council in 2021, is chaired by […]
International Day of Peace 2025: Choosing Peace in a Restless World
Dr Celestina Atom, Teesside University 17 September 2025 “Peace is not merely the absence of war; it is the presence of justice, law, order ‒ of good government.” Those words, expressed by Volker Türk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, echoes across decades, and feels almost uncomfortably relevant in 2025. Today, on the International Day of Peace, we are reminded that peace is not just about silencing guns. It is about building systems and relationships that allow people to live with dignity, fairness, and hope. But here’s the challenge: how do you talk about peace in a world where […]
Politics & IR from A-level to MA: a Student’s Journey
Recent graduate and PSA Membership and Programmes Officer, Theo, responds to questions about studying Politics at A-Level, undergraduate, and Master’s level. What prompted you to pursue a degree in Politics & IR? I pursued my first degree in politics and IR because I enjoyed the course so much at A-Level. It was well-structured to give you an overview of UK, US, comparative and theoretical political foundations, and sets you up well to study the content at undergraduate level. What prompted me to study A-Level politics, however, was the political uncertainty in the UK during the 2016-18 period (2016 Brexit Referendum, […]