Medha Bisht

Associate Professor

PhD (Jawaharlal Nehru University, 2010)

Contact Details

medhabisht(at)sau.ac.in

South Asian University ,Rajpur Rd, Maidan Garhi, New Delhi, Delhi 110068

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Profile

Dr Medha Bisht is a Ph. D from, Diplomatic Studies Division, Jawaharlal Nehru University. Her research interests include philosophy and theory of International Relations, water governance and diplomacy at international, transboundary and local scales,transnational networks in International Relations (with special focus on water, climate and energy sector), Asian diplomatic thought and qualitative methods. Her book,‘Kautilya’s Arthashastra: Philosophy of Strategy’ has been published by Routledge (London and New York 2020). Before joining SAU, she was an Associate Fellow at MP-IDSA, an independent think tank under the Ministry of Defence, and Research Associate with Institute for Social Studies Trust, an NGO with special consultative status with ECOSOC UN. She has also taught at Kumaon University, Uttarakhand. She has undertaken consultancies with UNIFEM, ICIMOD,UNDP, IUCN, OXFAM, DFID/Asia Foundation, University of Arizona. Dr Bisht also regularly delivers lectures in Sushma Swaraj Foreign Service Institute, Ministry of External Affairs on transboundary water issues and has participated in Track 2 and 1.5 dialogues on climate change. She is a member of regional and international working groups on transboundary rivers and climate change, and has lead and co-lead international projects on water governance and diplomacy with Dhaka University, IUCN, Uppsala University, WWF (P), Lahore. She writes for national dailies like Indian Express and the Pioneer, and alternative social media like The Wire and Live Encounters.

Qualifications

2004-2010: Ph.D. in Diplomatic Studies, (Diplomacy and Disarmament Division) Centre for International Politics, Organisation and Disarmament, School of International Studies (SIS), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi.
2008: Peace Research, International Summer School, University Of Oslo, Norway
2002-2004: M. Phil in Diplomatic Studies, Center for Studies in Diplomacy, International Law and Economics, SIS, JNU. New Delhi.
2002-2000. M.A in Politics (Spl in International Relations) ,SIS, JNU, New Delhi.
2000-1997: B.A (Hons) In History, Miranda House, Delhi University, New Delhi.
1997-1996: ISC in Humanities, All Saints College, Nainital.
1995-1994: I.C.S.E, All Saints College, Nainital.

Research Interests

Philosophy and Theory of International Relations
Water Governance and Diplomacy
Politics and Governance of Global Commons
Asian Diplomatic Thought and Diplomatic Practices
Networks and International Relations
Multistakeholder Negotiations and Diplomacy (with a focus on civil society organisations)

Recent Publications

Bhutan and the Geography of Climate Change in The Role of Tropics in Climate Change, ed Niloy Khare, Elselvier, 2024 (co-authored) 2024
Rethinking Dialogic Narratives in Water Diplomacy. Journal of Dialogue Studies, 11, 2023.
Culture as a Fluid Interlocutor: Perspectives on Water Diplomacy from South Asia, The Hague Journal of Diplomacy , June 2021.
India and Pakistan can future-proof their threatened rivers, Water Science Policy, June, 2023.
Thinking Through Networks: Towards a Feminist Water Diplomacy” , in Sehring, J., ter Horst, R., & Zwarteveen, M. (eds.), Oxon: Routledge, 2022.
Shared waterscapes: The case of river Ravi in Indian and Pakistan Punjab', in Dutta (ed), Water Conflicts and Resistance Issues and Challenges in South Asia, Oxon: Routledge, 2021 (with S Anwar)
Meeting John Stuart Mill and Mahatma Gandhi in Beitzel and Langare eds., Rethinking Mahatma Gandhi: The Global Appraisal, New Delhi: Rawat Publication, 2021.
Towards a networked strategy: framework for maritime South Asia', Journal of Indian Ocean Region, 16:2,2020.

Recent Books

Medha Bisht (2020), Kautilya's Arthashastra: Philosophy of Strategy (Routledge: London and New York) https://www.amazon.com/Kautilyas-Arthashastra-Philosophy-Medha-Bisht/dp/1138553077

Awards & Honours

Awarded a project titled, “Cross-regional learning for transformative water diplomacy (CroWD) with Institute for Water Education, IHE Delft, Netherlands 2023-2027

Awarded a Consultancy Grant by ICIMOD and University of Arizona, on Renewable Energy Transitions: Comparative Assessment in the Hindu Kush Himalayas, Andes and Alps, March – May 2021

Awarded a Consultancy Grant by OXFAM, Cambodia to lead a research project on Indigenous Women and Water Governance in the Transboundary Meghna Basin in South Asia, September 2020- January 2021.

Keynote Address on IRBM: Transboundary water resources, ICIMOD, Kathmandu, September 5, 2023.

Keynote Address on Water Diplomacy in South Asia: Towards a Relational Approach, Friedrich Naumann Foundation, Kathmandu, March 15, 2023

Selected as a South Asian delegate for an interactive study tour on Energy Transition, organized by the World Order and Globalization Hub to United States of America, May 2023

Track Two Dialogue on Climate Change between India and Pakistan, Bangkok, Thailand, October 4-5, 2022.

Selected as a South Asian delegate for professional training course on ‘multi-scale integrated river basin management in the Koshi Basin and Murray Darling Basin, ICIMOD, Alluvium and Griffith University, August-September 2022.

Last Updated : 28 Dec 2023