Rebecca Williams
Co-Director, CIGH, University of Exeter

Hello, I’m Dr. Rebecca Williams, Co-Director of the Centre for Imperial and Global History here at Exeter. I’m delighted to connect with scholars who are passionate about exploring the complex histories of medicine, health, and international development. My research focuses primarily on the history of health and medicine, particularly surrounding population, reproduction, and women’s health in modern South Asia, as well as the broader historical frameworks of international development that touch upon health, environmental concerns, and democracy.

Currently, I’m engaged in two significant research projects that shed light on these themes. My first project, which will result in a monograph tentatively titled Controlling Population, examines how India became the world’s test-case for state-led population control after independence. Through the Khanna Study—a pivotal family planning experiment in 1950s-60s Punjab—I explore why India became a laboratory for both transnational organizations and the Indian government’s ambitions in population control.

My second project focuses on the Indian Emergency of 1975-77, particularly the large-scale sterilization campaigns conducted under the national family planning program. Building on my article “Storming the Citadels of Poverty,” this research will result in a monograph tentatively titled Bodies of Democracy: Sterilization and the Emergency in India, 1975-77, supported by the Academy of Medical Sciences’ Springboard Award.

As a Senior Lecturer in Medical History in Exeter’s Department of Archaeology and History, I teach across undergraduate and postgraduate History programs, offering courses such as “History of Development: Ideologies, Politics, and Projects” and “Global Health: Historical Sources and Problems”, as well as contributing to the interdisciplinary MA in History. I also supervise PhD students whose interests align with my own, particularly those interested in modern medicine and health, women’s health, and the history of international development.

My academic background includes a BA in History from Cardiff University, an MA in the History of Medicine from University College London, and a PhD from the University of Warwick, complemented by a period of affiliation with Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi and fellowships at esteemed institutions worldwide. I look forward to welcoming inquiries from prospective PhD students keen to explore these challenging but rewarding areas of historical research. I can be contacted via email at r.williams2@exeter.ac.uk