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Biography
Professor Todd Landman is Professor of Political Science in the School of Politics and International Relations. He is the Research Director of the Rights Lab, a University Beacon of Excellence carrying out research on ending modern slavery. He is the Senior Independent Member of Council of the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), member of the editorial boards for The Conversation UK, the British Journal of Political Science, the Nordic Journal of Human Rights, and Politics and Governance, and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.
Previously, he was Pro Vice Chancellor of the Faculty of Social Scieneces (2015-2023) and Professor of Government (2009-2015) and Executive Dean (2013-2015) of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Essex. He teaches, researches, publishes, and carries out international consultancy in the areas of development, democracy and human rights. He has published over 100 peer reviewed journal articles, research monographs, textbooks, commissioned reports, handbooks, and reviews.
His international consultancy work has included projects with the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the United Nations Development Programme, the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, the European External Action Service, EUROSTAT, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the UK Department for International Development, the Swedish International Development Agency, the Danish International Development Agency, and the Canadian International Development Agency.
His current work on modern slavery includes projects and engagement with a wide range of external stakeholders and funders, including the US State Department Trafficking in People (TIP) Office, International Justice Mission, and Sainsbury's. .
Expertise Summary
The main focus of Professor Landman's research has been the systematic comparative analysis of problems in the areas of development, democracy, and human rights including quantitative and qualitative political methodology.
He is author of Human Rights and Democracy: The Precarious Triumph of Ideals (Bloomsbury 2013), Protecting Human Rights (Georgetown University Press 2005), Studying Human Rights (Routledge 2006), and Issues and Methods in Comparative Politics (Routledge 2000, 2003, 2008, 2016); co-author of The Rights Track: Sound Evidence on Human Rights and Modern Slavery (Anthem Press 2022), Measuring Human Rights (Routledge 2009), Assessing the Quality of Democracy (International IDEA 2008); Governing Latin America (Polity Press 2003), and Citizenship Rights and Social Movements (Oxford University Press 1997, 2000); editor of Human Rights Volumes I-IV (Sage 2009), and co-editor of the Sage Handbook of Comparative Politics (Sage 2009) and Real Social Science: Applied Phronesis (Cambridge University Press 2012).
He has numerous articles published in Political Geography, International Studies Quarterly, The British Journal of Political Science, Human Rights Quarterly, Journal of Risk Research, Democratization, Political Studies, The Journal of Human Rights, Spatial Economics, World Development, Nature Humanities and Social Sciences, The British Journal of Politics and International Relations, Electoral Studies, Human Rights and Human Welfare, Public Law, and The California Western International Law Journal.
Teaching Summary
Professor Landman has taught modules at the undergraduate, postgraduate, and PhD level on Latin American Politics, Development, Democracy, Human Rights, Social Movements, Comparative Methods, and… read more
Research Summary
The main focus of Professor Landman's research has been the systematic comparative analysis of problems in the areas of development, democracy, and human rights including quantitative and qualitative… read more
Recent Publications
Current Research
The main focus of Professor Landman's research has been the systematic comparative analysis of problems in the areas of development, democracy, and human rights including quantitative and qualitative political methodology. He is currently researching the contemporary anti-slavery movement in comparative perspective, and is working on a wide range of funded projects on human rights and modern slavery. He has been PI or Co-I on over £11 million of externally funded projects and is currently working on projects funded by the US State Department Trafficking in People (TIP) Office, International Justice Mission, and Sainsbury's.
Past Research
Comparative methods, measuring human rights, international human rights regime compliance. Democratic performance, economic development and democracy, citizenship rights and social movements.
Future Research
Social theory and modern slavery, methods and modern slavery, and framing effects in the contemporary anti-slavery movement.
The use of novel data capture techniques for understanding the prevalence of and explanations for modern slavery.