Karen J. Alter

Karen J. Alter is the Norman Dwight Harris Professor of International Relations and Professor of Political Science and Law at Northwestern University, where she also co-directs the Research Group on Global Capitalism and Law. She previously served as a Senior Research Fellow at the Bureau of Industry and Security at the Department of Commerce from August 2023-July 2024, sponsored by a CFR International Affairs Fellow for Tenured IR Faculty. She is also a permanent visiting faculty at the iCourts Center of Excellence at the University of Copenhagen Faculty of Law.

Alter is a renowned specialist in the politics of international law and international courts, with extensive research conducted across Latin America, Africa, and Europe. Her research interests include global capitalism and law, multilateralism, international law, international courts, law and politics, US export controls, and backlash politics. She has published six books and over seventy articles and book chapters, with recent work focusing on the construction of global economic rules, China's influence on international relations, and US export control politics.

Her recent publications explore trends in international judicialization, backlash against international institutions, and the evolving relationship between China and the global legal order. Her work demonstrates a consistent focus on how international legal institutions interact with domestic politics and how they weather political challenges.

• Certificate of Merit for a Preeminent Contribution to Creative Scholarship, American Society of International Law (2015)
• American Academy Berlin Prize (2012)
• John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship (2011)
• Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs Fellowship for Tenured IR Faculty (2023)
• Board of Lady Managers of the Columbia Exposition Chair (2018-2021)

Professor Alter has received research support from prestigious institutions including the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation, the American Academy of Berlin, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Howard Foundation, the German Marshall Fund, the DAAD, and the Bourse Chateaubriand Scientifique. She serves on the editorial boards of multiple leading journals including the American Journal of International Law, International Organization, and Journal of International Dispute Settlement. At Northwestern, she teaches courses on International Law and International Relations, Global Capitalism and Law, International Organizations, and Ethics in International Affairs at both graduate and undergraduate levels.