Our people

Refugee Cultural Heritage and the Cultural Rights in International Law' (Daniel Ghezelbash/Lucas Lixinski)

Ms Al Shallah’s research project is a study of the framework for the protection and safeguarding of refugee cultural heritage and the cultural rights of refugees. Her research and writing focus is natural sites and cultural objects. Her research cuts across three areas of international law, which are international cultural heritage law (ICHL), international human rights law (IHRL) and international refugee law (IRL). She researches and writes from her perspective as an emerging scholar from a refugee source country living as a migrant in a cultural context that departs from her heritage.

‘Data-driven approaches to improving the efficiency and fairness of refugee status determination procedures in Australia’ (Daniel Ghezelbash/Lyria Bennett Moses)

Mx Bridle’s research seeks to understand what insights a data-driven analysis of consistency in decision-making can provide for understanding, assessing, and improving the fairness of refugee status determination in Australia.

'Data Driven and Computation Methods of Understanding Australia’s Refugee Status Determination Procedures' (Daniel Ghezelbash/Lyria Bennett Moses/Amin Beheshti)

Mr Dorostkar’s research examines how Australia’s refugee status determination procedures operate across each stage of the process using a computational and data driven methodology. The research collects and analyses data from the Department of Immigration, Administrative Appeals Tribunal and the Federal Circuit and Family Court to track the lifecycle of refugee cases, with the overarching purpose of seeking to improve both the fairness and efficiency of refugee status determination procedures in Australia.

'Refugee protection and multi-State responsibility in the Asia-Pacific: a conceptual framework for accountability under international law’ (Jane McAdam AO/Guy S. Goodwin-Gill)

Ms Gleeson's research looks at whether and how international law regulates the conduct of States, or provides a remedy, in situations where two or more States contribute to harmful outcomes for refugees and asylum seekers, specifically within the context of forced displacement in the Asia-Pacific region.

See Madeline Gleeson's academic profile and publications.

'Exclusion from Refugee Protection: Individual Responsibility for Contravening the Purposes and Principles of the United Nations' (Sarah Williams/Sangeetha Pillai)

Mr Hammerschmid's thesis investigates the scope of Article 1F(c) of the 1951 Refugee Convention and its nexus with international human rights law, international criminal law, and international humanitarian law. The overall aim of the thesis is to articulate a complete and coherent analytical framework for applying the uncertain and underexplored provisions of Article 1F(c) in both domestic refugee status determinations and in refugee status determinations conducted under the mandate of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

'Refugee community sponsorship in Australia: Prospects and pitfalls' (Jane McAdam AO/Rosalind Dixon)

Mr Hoang's research examines the prospects and potential pitfalls of utilising community/private sponsorship of refugees as an additional or alternative pathway for the resettlement of refugees to Australia, drawing upon historical and comparative perspectives.

See Khanh Hoang's academic profile and publications. 

‘The challenges of international responsibility-sharing for refugees and internally displaced persons: A global framework for corporate autonomy in humanitarian matters?’ (Claire Higgins/Guy S. Goodwin-Gill)

Ms Malafosse’s project analyses how the concept of responsibility-sharing for refugees could be approached and operationalised while fully integrating the business sector. It explores the possibilities for the development of a global framework on corporate humanitarian initiatives and responsibilities, in which businesses can systemically empower refugees through work and participate in safeguarding their labour rights.

See Camille Malafosse's academic profile and publications.

'Rethinking the role of "external processing" in the European Union: what would a principled "regional" approach look like?' (Jane McAdam AO/Justine Nolan)

Ms Moodley’s doctoral research is focused on assessing the legal feasibility of the EU introducing ‘regional’ measures to process asylum seekers before they reach Europe during ‘mass influx’ situations. Relevantly, her study seeks to explore whether such an idea, if undertaken as a complementary pathway to protection in the EU (that is, without prejudice to the right to claim asylum on the territory of EU member states), is capable of operating in compliance with international and EU human rights law, and if so, what that might look like in practice. 

See Riona Moodley's academic profile and publications.

'The future of climate-related internal displacement in Australia – how should Australia respond to climate displacement within its territory? A duty to relocate? (Jane McAdam AO/Amelia Thorpe)

Ms Pailthorpe’s research investigates how Australia’s federal, state/territory and local governments should respond to people who are displaced within Australia in the context of climate change and disasters (e.g bushfires, floods, and other extreme weather events including heat waves), asking as its central question:  ‘Do Australian authorities have a duty to relocate people who are at risk of displacement in the context of climate change and disasters?’ In exploring this question, Ms Pailthorpe’s research considers recent planned relocation policy responses by Governments within Australia in response to sudden onset climate disasters and focuses on the legal issues that emerge in considering planned relocation (including land swaps and buy-back programs)

'In the Child’s Best Interest: A Socio-legal Examination of Children’s Experiences and Rights in Evacuations from Disasters' (Jane McAdam AO and Dr Thomas Mulder)

Ms Seglah has experience in international development and has undertaken interdisciplinary research and advocacy on inclusive disaster risk reduction policy and practice. Specifically, her work has focused on the impact of disasters on marginalised populations. As part of the Evacuations Research Hub, her research will employ a socio-legal lens to explore child rights in evacuations from disasters related to natural-hazards. 

'Displacement in the context of climate change and the right to life: examining the law-making potential of strategic litigation' (Jane McAdam AO/Amelia Thorpe)

Ms Talbot’s research examines the law-making potential of strategic litigation to respond to emerging, disruptive human rights challenges. It will do this through the prism of impacts of displacement in the context of climate change and disasters on the right to life. As a thesis based on international law, the focus will be on the responsibility of governments.

See Anna Talbot's academic profile and publications.

‘Gendering the International Law Criteria for Return of Refugees: the case of Sudan’ (Jane McAdam AO/Christine Forster)

Voluntary repatriation has been upheld as the ‘ideal’ solution for refugees by the United Nations General Assembly since 1948. Its inclusion in international refugee law instruments originated from efforts to prevent forced return practices with dire humanitarian consequences following the Second World War.  However, voluntary far from ideal for refugee women. The thesis applies a gender-sensitive approach to voluntary repatriation in international refugee law. It demonstrates that this law fails to include women’s experiences, risking forced return to the harm their fled. It proposes a transformation of the law to better protect refugee women.

See Natasha Yacoub's academic profile and publications.

‘Reviving the Relevance of the Refugee Convention and International Law: A Study of the Rohingya in Bangladesh’ (Daniel Ghezelbash/Tristan Harley/Claire Higgins)

Ms Yameen’s research investigates Rohingya refugee voices in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, together with the voices of Bangladeshi civil society and state actors, to inform a contextual understanding of Bangladesh as a host state, and the relevance of the Refugee Convention and international law to host states and protracted displacement contexts. She hopes this project will inform future protection solutions for the Rohingya refugees through interdisciplinary research.