Bidisha Biswas

Bidisha Biswas is a Professor in the Department of Political Science at Western Washington University (WWU), serving as the Faculty Legislative Representative (FLR). She holds a BA from the University of Delhi and a PhD from the University of Maryland, College Park. Her current role includes advocating for higher education policies with state legislators. She has held significant research fellowships, including at BICC (2024) and the Centre for Global Cooperation Research (2021–2024), focusing on refugee governance and Global South politics. She was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Lisbon (2019) and a Franklin Fellow at the U.S. Department of State (2012–2013).

Her research interests center on Global South politics, refugee governance, diaspora politics, and international security. Notable collaborations include work with Women in International Security and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. She teaches courses on international relations, American foreign policy, and conflict processes, emphasizing policy-oriented analysis. Her innovative teaching approaches were featured in WWU’s 2016–2017 Innovative Teaching Showcase.

Biswas has authored numerous publications, including in the Journal of Refugee Studies and Nations and Nationalism. She co-produced the documentary Creating Change, which won a Silver Award at the AEJMC Festival. Her awards also include recognition for pedagogical contributions to addressing campus polarization.

• Education:
  • PhD, Department of Government and Politics, University of Maryland, College Park
  • BA, University of Delhi
• Recent Positions:
  • Research Fellow, BICC (Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies), 2024
  • Research Fellow, Centre for Global Cooperation Research (GCR), 2021–2024