NES Faculty

Thomas Pierret
Postdoctoral Research Associate

email: nes@princeton.edu

Pierret completed his Ph.D. in political science at the Institut d’Études Politiques, Paris, and the Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium. His dissertation, “The Ulema in Contemporary Syria: Making Tradition Relevant, Finding a Place in an Authoritarian System,” focuses on the writings and political activism of the ulema as well as their daily religious activities as teachers, educators, and social leaders. His research project at Princeton will be “‘Sufi ‘Ulema in the Saudi Hijaz: Regional Revival, Authoritarianism, and Globalization.” Examining how the Hijazi Sufi ulema managed to survive eight decades of repression resulting from the hostility of the Wahhabi ulema, Pierret will address two main theoretical issues: The functioning of authoritarian states in their relations with traditional forms of religious authority and the impact of globalization on local religious identities.