Bonnie Docherty

Bonnie Docherty is a Lecturer on Law at Harvard Law School’s International Human Rights Clinic (IHRC) and Director of its Armed Conflict and Civilian Protection Initiative. She is also Senior Arms Adviser in Human Rights Watch’s Crisis, Conflict, and Arms Division. Her work focuses on humanitarian disarmament, including treaties banning nuclear weapons, explosive weapons, and autonomous systems. She played a key role in negotiating the 2017 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, supporting ICAN (2017 Nobel Peace Prize recipient), and shaping the 2022 Political Declaration on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas.

Education: A.B. in History and Literature (Harvard College), J.D. (Harvard Law School). She has advised on over 50 publications, advocating for legal frameworks to protect civilians in armed conflicts. Her research bridges international law, ethics, and policy, addressing issues like incendiary weapons, climate migration, and environmental impacts of war.

Key contributions include advancing autonomous weapons bans, documenting civilian harm in Afghanistan, Gaza, Iraq, and Ukraine, and developing principles for addressing conflict-driven environmental damage. She collaborates with global NGOs, governments, and UN bodies to strengthen humanitarian law.