Dr Erin Pobjie

Biography

Dr Erin Pobjie is Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in International Law at Essex Law School, specialising in international peace and security law. Her research examines how international law shapes responses to contemporary security challenges, including the use of force, space security, hybrid threats, and climate and energy security. She is the author of Prohibited Force: The Meaning of ‘Use of Force’ in International Law (Cambridge University Press, 2024), and serves as Co-Rapporteur of the International Law Association’s Committee on the Use of Force. Dr Pobjie also regularly peer-reviews for leading journals, including the American Journal of International Law and the European Journal of International Law. She currently holds the British Academy Global Innovation Fellowship at the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP) in Berlin, where she works on legal and strategic responses to emerging threats, with a focus on space security, hybrid operations, and the vulnerabilities of critical infrastructure and energy systems. She is also a Senior Research Affiliate at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law and a Non-Resident Fellow at the UN Institute for Disarmament Research, where she contributes to the Space Security Programme. Her career spans academia, international organisations, and legal practice, including work with the International Criminal Court and the United Nations. She regularly engages with policy audiences, presenting her research to governments, defence ministries and international organisations on legal frameworks for emerging security challenges. She is a qualified lawyer admitted to practice in Australia.

Qualifications

• PhD in International Law (summa cum laude) University of Cologne,

• LLM in International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (Distinction) University of Essex,

• Bachelor of Arts (Development Studies), Bachelor of Laws (Honours) University of Melbourne,

Appointments

University of Essex

• Lecturer (Assistant Professor), School of Law (1/10/2021 - present)

Other academic

• British Academy Global Innovation Fellow (Technology & International Affairs), Center for Climate and Foreign Policy, German Council on Foreign Relations (23/9/2024 - present)

• Fellow, United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR) (1/1/2024 - present)

• Senior Research Affiliate, Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law (1/10/2021 - present)