Kathryn Sikkink

Kathryn Sikkink serves as the Ryan Family Professor of Human Rights Policy at Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard University, and holds an honorary doctorate from Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU).

Her research examines human rights accountability through domestic prosecutions for war crimes and mass atrocities, analyzing how democratic transitions create justice opportunities while contemporary democratic backsliding jeopardizes victim redress. She investigates the interplay between a state's liberal democracy level and historical human rights abuses in driving domestic trial initiation.

Scientific awards:

• Honorary Doctorate from FAU