The Department of Politics and International Studies is delighted to announce that Dr Alena Drieschova, Associate Professor of International Relations, has been awarded two prestigious prizes by the International Studies Association (ISA).
Dr Drieschova’s work, Representants and International Orders: The Staging of Political Authority (Cambridge University Press, 2025), has been named the winner of both the STAIR (Science, Technology, and Art in International Relations) Best Book Award and the DPLST (Diplomatic Studies) Book Award for 2026.
About the Book
Representants and International Orders offers a path-breaking analysis of how international order is constructed and maintained through "representants"—the practices, artefacts, and language that make abstract political entities legible. Spanning centuries of European history, from medieval coronation rituals to contemporary dynamics in the European Union, the book explores how changes in these representations—such as maps, GDP data, and diplomatic protocols—redefine authority and transform the global power landscape.
About the Awards
The STAIR Best Book Award recognises research that demonstrates outstanding engagement with the intersections of science, technology, or art within international relations. Simultaneously, the DPLST Book Award honours the year’s most significant contribution to the field of diplomatic studies.
The dual recognition highlights the book’s interdisciplinary impact, blending practice theory and historical sociology to provide a fresh perspective on the staging of political authority.
A Career Milestone
Reflecting on the achievement, Dr Drieschova said:
"The book is my first monograph, it is the result of my PhD research. I've been working on it for around 15 years, so receiving this recognition from the primary academic association in my discipline in the form of two section awards (Diplomatic Studies and Science, Technology, and Art in International Relations) is a true honour."
The Department extends its warmest congratulations to Dr Drieschova on this significant achievement.