UC San Diego Professors Join Prestigious American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Stephan Haggard is a distinguished research professor of political science at the UC San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy and is associate director of the school’s Korea-Pacific Program. He also serves as research director for democracy and global governance at the UC Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation (ICGG).

Haggard has a global reputation in the fields of international relations, comparative politics and political economy. His research has expanded understanding of the political economy of the Asia-Pacific, including the rapid growth of the newly industrializing countries and their experience with financial crises. He has made noteworthy contributions with respect to the Korean peninsula, including both North and South Korea.

He received his Ph.D. in political science from the University of California, Berkeley in 1983 and taught in the Department of Government at Harvard University from 1983 to 1991 before joining the faculty at the School of Global Policy and Strategy.

He has co-authored several influential publications on the transitions to and from democratic rule, including the phenomenon of democratic backsliding among established democracies. His current research on this topic centers on the role of illiberal regimes in seeking to shape global governance through multilateral institutions, including the United Nations system.

Haggard has authored more than 140 peer-reviewed works translated into five languages. His most recent work on the politics and political economy of Asia includes “Developmental States” (2018) and “East Asia in the World: Twelve Events That Shaped the Modern International Order” (with David Kang).

Kenneth Intriligator is the Broida Chair and distinguished professor of Physics. He earned his undergraduate degree at UC San Diego, where he received the S.K. Ma Memorial Prize in Physics. He earned his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from Harvard University, did his postdoctoral research at Rutgers University, and was a long-term member at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. He returned to UC San Diego as an associate professor in 1996. Intriligator’s research is on the theory of quantum fields, particularly in developing symmetry-based methods to explore novel aspects of quantum fields (including interconnections with mathematics). He was named a Simons Investigator and is a co-principal investigator of the Simons Collaboration on Global Categorical Symmetry.

Intriligator is fascinated by the fact that we are ripples on an ocean of quantum fields, filling all spacetime; all matter and interactions — including us — are analogous to waves on this quantum “ocean.” More information about quantum field theory and Intriligator’s research can be found in a recorded talk he gave at the Aspen Physics Center. 

“I’m grateful to many inspiring scientists, mentors and collaborators, starting with my mother who is a space plasma physicist,” said Intriligator. “I look forward to joining the Academy of Arts and Sciences and contributing to its mission of working across disciplines to advance the common good.”

President of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences David Oxtoby welcomed the incoming cohort of 250 members, stating, “We honor these artists, scholars, scientists, and leaders in the public, non-profit and private sectors for their accomplishments and for the curiosity, creativity and courage required to reach new heights. We invite these exceptional individuals to join in the academy’s work to address serious challenges and advance the common good.”

The academy was founded on ideals that celebrate the life of the mind, the importance of knowledge, and the belief that the arts and sciences are necessary to the interest, honor, dignity and happiness of a free, independent and virtuous people. Read the 2024 member announcement on their website.