Prof William Walker

Emeritus Professor

Researcher profile

Email
wbw@st-andrews.ac.uk

 

Research areas

The international politics and regulation of weapons of mass destruction, with emphasis on nuclear weapons and fissile materials; and problems in technological decision-making.

Initially trained as an electrical engineer, William Walker has been involved in the study of technological innovation, energy policy, military industries and especially international nuclear relations during his academic career.

He has been particularly noted for his work on the history and conceptualisation of the international rule-based nuclear order that took shape during the Cold War and flourished in the immediate post-Cold War period, regrettably followed by its descent into today’s disorder; on the political and institutional processes by which complex technological decisions and paths become entrenched; and on national inventories, production processes and international regulation (or its absence) of plutonium and highly enriched uranium, the fissile materials used in nuclear weapons.

Selected publications

 

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