Meet CECE’s Civic Engagement and Activism Postdoctoral Fellow Arman Azedi
In January CECE welcomed our Civic Engagement and Activism Postdoctoral Fellow Arman Azedi. We are grateful to have Arman join our team and look forward to seeing his great work at CECE. We sat down with Arman to get to know him a bit better:
Where were you before you arrived at AU?
I recently completed my PhD in sociology at the University of California, Irvine. Following the program, I became a Visiting Scholar at the Institute for Research on World-Systems at the University of California, Riverside.
Tell us about your main research focus?
My research primarily focuses on social change and political behavior. Specific topics I’ve studied include protest participation, support for populist parties worldwide, the practices of human rights organizations, and the generational divide between youth and elders in political beliefs. I’ve also studied environmental topics such as the global transition to renewable energy.
Please summarize your dissertation.
My dissertation investigated the ideological profiles of ordinary citizens that support left-wing and right-wing populist political forces in Europe, the United States, and Latin America. The key finding was that political authoritarian views were a common theme in the ideology of supporters of right-wing populists in all regions, while supporters of left-wing populism are largely democratic in their political orientations.
What are you working on at CECE?
I’m involved in a number of projects at CECE, some of which include 1) studying the political beliefs, motivations, and demographics of participants in political actions in the Washington DC area, 2) gathering interview data on the participants and leaders involved with federal service programs such as AmeriCorps, and 3) managing the DataCorps Fellows program.
How did you get involved in this work/ where did you get your start?
Having been involved in activist and community groups myself, studying socio-political change was a natural area of interest for me. My hope is that my research can help us understand the most pragmatic strategies for creating a better world.
What is 1 thing in the environmental sector that makes you feel optimistic?
The gradual growth of renewable energy on a global scale is encouraging to me, especially the growth of wind and solar energy. Although we continue to endure climate shocks and extreme weather events, the world’s share of electricity produced by renewables simultaneously continues to tick upward. This makes me hopeful that a carbon-neutral future is possible and within reach.
