Phil Orchard

Phil Orchard is a Professor of International Relations at the University of Wollongong’s School of Humanities and Social Inquiry, and co-directs the UOW Future of Rights Centre (FoRC). He previously served as Associate Professor at the University of Queensland and held roles at the Asia Pacific Centre for the Responsibility to Protect and the University of London’s Refugee Law Initiative. He earned a PhD from the University of British Columbia and worked at the UN Secretary-General’s office for internally displaced persons.

His research focuses on international norms, forced displacement, climate migration, and the Responsibility to Protect (R2P). He has authored numerous articles on refugee law, atrocity crimes, and global governance, with recent work emphasizing norm contestation and climate-related mobility. His 2024 book Contesting the World: Norm Research in Theory and Practice explores methodological approaches to studying international norms.

Orchard has received awards including the 2016 Australian Awards for University Teaching Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning. He actively engages with media and public discourse on global issues, leveraging his Bluesky/X platform to highlight crises like Gaza, Iran-Israel tensions, and U.S. immigration policies. His academic leadership includes co-editing journals and directing research centers focused on rights-based frameworks and humanitarian accountability.

• Education: PhD in International Relations, University of British Columbia
• Key Roles:
  • Co-Director, UOW Future of Rights Centre
  • Discipline Leader, Politics and International Studies
  • Senior Research Fellow, Asia Pacific Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
• Grants & Leadership: Focus on migration, climate displacement, and international accountability mechanisms

Orchard’s work bridges academia and policy, advocating for systemic responses to global displacement crises and normative shifts in international relations.