Dr. Audrey Williams
Narrative Transformation Specialist
Email: odriwilliams@gmail.com
Hello!
I am a narrative transformation specialist who conducts research, pedagogy, and practice at the intersection of worldbuilding, conflict transformation, and social impact.
At the heart of my work is one question:
How can we tell good stories that do good in the world?
My dissertation, “Building Muslim and Non-Muslim Songworlds in the Post-9/11 Era,” explores how music can serve as a powerful medium for meaning-making around cases of political and social conflict.
I am currently completing my Ph.D. in Conflict Analysis and Resolution at the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution at George Mason University (defended: Feb. 2026; expected graduation: May 2026).
I am also the Lab Manager of The Narrative Transformation Lab, where I work with colleagues across a wide variety of disciplines to develop para-curricular resources for those who seek to understand the narrative underpinnings of peace and conflict resolution.
Prior to my graduate studies, I was a 2015–16 Fulbright Research Fellow at Ankara University in Ankara, Turkey, and a Fall 2013 Herbert Scoville, Jr. Peace Fellow at The Stimson Center in Washington, D.C.
I hold an M.A. in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from George Mason University and a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Iowa.
Outside of my work, I am an amateur composer, reviving my teenage love of piano one song at a time.
I am on the 2026–2027 job market. You can find my CV here.
PUBLICATIONS
BOOKS & BOOK CHAPTERS
Williams, A. (2025). Songworld. In S. A. Samoilenko & S. Simmons (Eds.), The Handbook of Social and Political Conflict (pp. 241–250). Wiley Blackwell. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9781119895534.ch22
Friedman, A., & Williams, A. (2022). Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution: Building peace and pursuing justice, from 1981 to 2021 and beyond. Fairfax, VA: Mason Publishing.
PEER-REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS
Romano, A., Werblow, J., & Williams, A. (2022). Evolving conceptualizations of peace education in Hiroshima Japan. Asian Journal of Peacebuilding, 10(2), 411–434. doi: 10.18588/202204.00a223. (PDF)
NON-PEER REVIEWED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS
Williams, A. (2020, July). ‘Like the beginning of the end of the world’: Salvaging the meaning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nilima: A Journal of Law and Policy, 3(2), 99–122. https://studionilima.com/publications
Roychoudhury, K., & Williams, A. (2019, July). A ‘struggle for survival’: The clash between elephants and human settlements in the wildlife reserves of Assam. Nilima: A Journal of Law and Policy, 2(2), 1–10. https://studionilima.com/publications
REPORTS
Williams, A. (2014, November). Beyond boundaries: The role of the IAEA in balancing security and development priorities in the 21st century. Washington, D.C.: The Stimson Center. Retrieved from https://www.stimson.org/sites/default/files/file-attachments/role-iaea-balancing-security-and-development-priorities-21st-century.pdf
PUBLIC SCHOLARSHIP
Williams, A. (2023, April 12). The many lives and meanings of “Bella Ciao.” The Narrative Transformation Lab. https://tntlab.carterschool.gmu.edu/discover/rabbit-holes/the-many-lives-and-meanings-of-bella-ciao/
Williams, A. (2020, September). Camp David, Hal Saunders, and responsibility in peacemaking. Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. https://carterschool.gmu.edu/why-study-here/legacy-leadership/camp-david-hal-saunders-and-responsibility-peacemaking
Williams, A. (2020). The groundbreaking contributions of Burton, Laue, and Warfield. Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. https://carterschool.gmu.edu/about/legacy-leadership/groundbreaking-contributions-burton-laue-and-warfield
“Songworld” Review
“Section 3, which explores narrative and imagination, is perhaps the most conceptually daring. Audrey Ann Williams’s chapter, ‘Songworld’ (p. 241), offers a poetic yet rigorous account of the way music becomes a form of resistance and identity-building in conflict zones. ...These essays showcase the handbook’s commitment to stretching the boundaries of what counts as conflict communication.”
– Márton Demeter (2026), “Book Review: The Handbook of Social and Political Conflict, by Sergei A. Samoilenko and Solon Simmons” (link to the full review)