Dr. Harout Akdedian studies state-society relations, public policy and administration, and Middle East politics and society. His areas of interest include exclusionary extremism, state institutions and atrophy, civil rights and the Syrian conflict. He joined the Civil Rights Unit at the Oregon Department of Justice in February 2022 as Program Analyst. He is Visiting Scholar at Portland State University’ Middle East Studies Center and Associate Fellow at the Central European University in Vienna.
Prior to joining the Oregon Department of Justice, Akdedian was a research fellow at the Human Rights Center in Costa Rica and worked as research consultant for multiple organizations and think tanks including the United Nations – Economic and Social Commission of Western Asa (ESCWA), and Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in political science and international law, and has a PhD in Islamic Studies from the University of New England (AU). He was a recipient of the International Postgraduate Research Award for his doctoral studies and has taught on campuses worldwide. His publications feature in peer-reviewed academic journals including Political Geography and the Middle East Journal. He is the author of multiple books including, State Atrophy in Syria: War, Society and Institutional Change, which examines the disastrous consequences of undermining state institutions and public trust by government officials in Syria.