Researcher
Wrenn Yennie Lindgren
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Summary
Wrenn Yennie Lindgren is a Senior Research Fellow and Head of Center for Asian Research at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI), as well as an Associate Research Fellow at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs (UI).
Her main research interests are: foreign policy analysis, international relations in East Asia and the Indo-Pacific, the politics and foreign policy of Japan, and Asia-Arctic diplomacy.
Recent research projects have focused on: Japan’s foreign and security policy legitimation; infrastructure power and responses to China’s Belt Road Initiative (BRI); Japan’s multilateral engagement, including NATO-Japan relations; identity politics in Sino-Japanese relations; Japan-Russia energy cooperation; Japan’s engagement in Southeast Asia; and alternative alignments in the Indo-Pacific. In addition, since joining NUPI in 2013, Wrenn has worked on issues related to Asia-Arctic diplomacy.
Wrenn currently leads the multi-year project Roads to Power? The political effects of infrastructure projects in Asia (ROADS) , funded by The Research Council of Norway. She also co-leads the international research project ‘Coercive and Emotional Diplomacy in East Asia: Japanese Responses’, funded by Nordforsk, and co-developed and participates in the projects Chinese Anger Diplomacy (ANGER) and China and Evolving Multilateral Craftmanship in the Age of Digitalization (CHIMULTI), both funded by The Research Council of Norway.
Wrenn’s peer-reviewed work has appeared in, inter alia, The Pacific Review, The Hague Journal of Diplomacy, Japanese Journal of Political Science, Asian Perspective, Asian Politics & Policy, Polar Geography and Journal of Eurasian Studies. She co-edited the volume China and Nordic Diplomacy (Routledge, 2018) and contributed chapters on Japan to the volume Kinship in International Relations (Routledge, 2018) and The Routledge Handbook of Arctic Security (Routledge, 2020).
Wrenn holds a PhD in International Relations from Stockholm University and master's degrees in International Policy Studies (Monterey Institute of International Studies, U.S.) and Asia and Middle East Studies (University of Oslo). She has extensive fieldwork experience in Japan and was a Japan Foundation Fellow at Meiji University from 2018-2019 and visiting fellow at Waseda University`s Graduate School of Asia Pacific Studies (GSAPS) in Tokyo.
Expertise
Education
2016-2021 Stockholm University, PhD in International Relations
2018-2019 Visiting Researcher and Japan Foundation Fellow, Meiji University, Tokyo
2012-2014 University of Oslo, MPhil Asia and Middle East Studies
2007-2011 Monterey Institute of International Policy Studies, MA International Policy Studies
2009-2010 Waseda University Graduate School of Asia Pacific Studies, Tokyo, Visiting Graduate Student
2008-2009 The Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies, Stanford University, Yokohama
2004-2007 Pepperdine University, BA International Studies and French
Work Experience
2021- Senior Research Fellow, NUPI
2017- Associate Fellow, Swedish Institute of International Affairs (UI)
2013-2021 Research Fellow, NUPI
2016-2017 Visiting Research Fellow, Swedish Institute of International Affairs (UI)
2011-2013 Communication Consultant, Freelance
2011 Junior Fellow, Office of the Rector, United Nations University (UNU), Tokyo
2010 APEC Liaison, Economic Section, U.S. Embassy Tokyo, U.S. Department of State
2010 Intern, Political Section, U.S. Embassy Tokyo, U.S. Department of State
2007-2008 Graduate Research Assistant, East Asia Nonproliferation Program, James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies
2005-2007 Teaching Assistant, French Department, Pepperdine University
2006 Intern Analyst, International Affairs and Trade Section, U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO)
Aktivitet
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China and the Nordics - Global Challenges in Chinese and Nordic Perspectives
Experts from leading think tanks visit NUPI to discuss the China-Nordic relationship in light of today's challenges.
The Challenges and Dynamics of Alliance Policies: Norway,NATO and the High North
The global system of alliances that the United States built after the Second World War underpinned the stability and prosperity of the postwar order. But during the 20th century, the multilateral NATO alliance system in Europe and the bilateral San Francisco alliance system in Asia rarely interacted. This changed in the early 21st century, as US allies came together to fight and stabilise conflicts in the Middle East and Central Asia. This volume presents the first-ever comparative study of US alliances in Europe and Asia from the perspectives of US allies: the challenges, opportunities and shifting dynamics of these fundamental pillars of order. This volume is essential reading for those interested in contemporary and future regional and global security dynamics.
The Challenges and Dynamics of Alliance Policies: Norway,NATO and the High North
This chapter sets out to discuss two major framework conditions for Norwegian foreign, security and defence policy: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the High North. Having to address increasingly heterogeneous security concerns and agendas, how do alliances shape their members’ foreign, security and defence policies? And how do the specific challenges related to the High North, such as Russia and other states’ policy agendas, form Norwegian responses and policies? In answering these questions, we aim to explore the framework conditions in a contemporary and historical context.
Identity Politics and the East China Sea: China as Japan's 'Other'
This article contributes to the relational IR literature on identity politics and Sino-Japanese relations. Theoretically, we develop Rumelili's 2004 framework for studying modes of differentiation by incorporating the sectoral characteristics of key discourse signs. Empirically, we apply this framework to the construction of Self and Other in the official Japanese security discourse regarding the Senkaku Islands dispute from 2010–2014, a period of dispute climax that is meaningful for studying the (re)production of Japan's understanding of China. The inclusiveness of the discourse signs that Japan uses to construct China possibly opens up for a positive evolution of Sino-Japanese relations, as there is space for progress if China's behavior—and Japan's interpretation of it—proves to be more peaceful, transparent, and law-abiding. The findings also suggest, however, that the strong sense of superiority in Japan (and China) vis-à-vis a subordinate Other may not bode well for Sino-Japanese relations.
Kampen om idemessigé forklaringer på japansk sikkerhetspolitikk: Kina i Japans identitetskonstruksjon
China and the Nordics Seminar Series
What roles can the Nordic countries play in China’s emerging European engagement?...
Maritime Security in East Asia: Summer of Our Discontent?
Demarcation disputes in the East China Sea have increased tensions made questions of maritime security in East Asia topical.
Advancing female leadership in the institute sector (NUPIBAL)
NUPIBAL promotes gender equality at NUPI....
Developments in the Russian Far East (RFE)
The project "Developments in the Russian Far East" looks at Russian decision-making and international engagement around development of Russia’s Pacific coast....