Professor of Laws, Northumbria University, Newcastle
I am an academic lawyer with a particular interest in the Pacific islands. I have researched and published on a range of human rights, family and resource issues. Recent work has focused on environmental concerns including but not limited to Marine Protected Areas, indigenous rights, climate risks.
Having initially majored in English and Social Anthropology, I studied law in the mixed jurisdiction of South Africa before post-graduate studies in South Africa and at Cambridge. I have held posts at the University of KwaZulu Natal (Pietermaritizburg), the University of the West of England, the University of the South Pacific and at the University of Dundee, as well as teaching at universities in France and Malaysia. I am currently an Adjunct Professor at the University of the South Pacific and an Associate of the Centre for Pacific Studies at St Andrews University in Scotland.
Research interests are broadly human rights, particularly those of women and children, and the law that governs property, including but not limited to, land and intellectual property. My research often uses case studies from the island countries of the South Pacific region to focus on issues of human rights, legal pluralism, the challenges of development and sustainability, globalisation and legal colonialism. In particular I am interested in the interface between legal systems and normative frameworks within states and between states, and the relationship between national, regional and international players in shaping and developing legal responses to contemporary issues. I welcome interdisciplinary collaboration and research that escapes from the usual categorisation of legal topics.
Protecting marine areas seem a good idea – but they may have insidious political effects
Oct 09, 2018 13:00 pm UTC| Insights & Views Nature
Zones of ocean known as Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are all the rage. They have no single or agreed definition, but essentially they are areas of sea in which human activity is restricted or prohibited in order to...
Black Friday: a logistical nightmare that’s bad for the environment
How to pick the 'right' amount to spend on holiday gifts – according to an economist
Poverty: what low-income countries need is not more economic growth, it’s less shrinking
The city of Akure is developing fast. But citizens aren't having their say
Do politicians break their promises once in government? What the evidence says
Women have been a lot less visible in this UK general election campaign – why?
How many voters really switch parties in British elections? What the evidence tells us