About the Institute

Housed in the newly refurbished Chrystal Macmillan Building, the Institute is situated in the heart of Edinburgh University’s social science community. It offers state-of-the-art facilities for hosting conferences and visiting scholars.

The Institute was founded in 2008 to foster interdisciplinary research into the global challenges facing the international order. Its members’ and associates’ expertise spans political science, international relations, philosophy, social anthropology, law, sociology, geography, economics, criminology, business management, African studies and South Asian studies. The Institute also coordinates social science research collaboration with Edinburgh’s world class researchers in geosciences and medicine.

Our research is oriented to understanding and influencing the principles, policies and institutions of international order in their economic, political, social, security and ethical dimensions. It addresses interconnected themes: global justice & human rights; security, conflict & peace; environment, natural resources & climate change.

The JWI's Ethics Forum supports academic and public debate on the ethical dimensions of contemporary concerns, with standing groups addressing the ethical dimensions of core research and teaching themes of the University's Global Academies.