James Alston completed his Bachelor's degree in History at Cardiff University. His final year thesis consisted of an intellectual history of the development of Confucianism throughout the 20th Century in China, and how it interacted with other ideas circulating in China at that time including liberalism, communism, anarchism and fascism. His research interests include East Asia, intellectual history and the history of ideas. Following on from his undergraduate dissertation, he hopes to explore the crossover of ideas at a more global level.

Aside from his studies, James works as a freelance writer for several different companies and magazines, writing on such diverse topics as international politics, animal rights and electoral reform.