Richard G. Alexander is an assistant professor in the Willem Pompe Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology at the University of Utrecht. Following 4 years of service in the Royal Marines Commandos, Richard transitioned to an academic career earning a Bachelor in Criminology from Manchester Metropolitan University (cum laude), an MA in Global Criminology from Utrecht University (cum laude), and an MA in Social Research Methods from the University of Kent (cum laude). 

His doctoral research examined the narrative meanings being ascribed to psychedelic drug use in non-clinical contexts, amidst the broader context of the psychedelic 'renaissance’. As a researcher Richard is principally interested in drugs, drug use, and drug users, and the culturally constructed meanings surrounding them.