معرفی
Professor Toni Erskine is a leading scholar of International Politics at the Australian National University's Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs, where she holds a full Professorship and previously served as School Director (2018-2023). She concurrently serves as Associate Fellow of the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence at Cambridge University and was Editor of International Theory journal from 2019-2023.
Her distinguished academic journey includes a BA (Hons) First Class in Political Science from the University of British Columbia, an MSc with Distinction in Social and Political Theory from the University of Edinburgh, and a PhD from the University of Cambridge. She has held prestigious appointments including British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship and Lurie-Murdoch Senior Research Fellowship in Global Ethics at RMIT University.
Erskine's research critically examines moral agency in world politics, focusing on institutional responsibility of states and organizations, AI's impact on warfare ethics, human protection during mass atrocities, and global coalitions addressing existential threats. Her work challenges assumptions about synthetic moral agents while analyzing Chinese IR theory's 'moral realism' and the erosion of wartime restraint through algorithmic systems. She maintains a skeptical perspective on cosmopolitan theories' practical implementation.
Analysis of her 2020-2024 publications reveals dominant trends in AI-warfare ethics (60% of output), with particular emphasis on decision-making risks and responsibility displacement. Her scholarship increasingly bridges Chinese and Western IR theory while maintaining strong engagement with Responsibility to Protect frameworks and institutional learning after moral failures in global governance.
- International Studies Association's 2024-25 Distinguished Scholar Award in International Ethics
- Associate Fellow, Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence
- British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship
- Lurie-Murdoch Senior Research Fellowship in Global Ethics
As Chief Investigator of the Australian Government-funded 'Anticipating the Future of War' project, Erskine leads cutting-edge research on AI's impact on force decisions. Her grant portfolio includes UN ESCAP/APRU's 'AI for Social Good' initiative (serving as Academic Lead with Thailand and Bangladesh governments), 'Moral Skill and AI' collaboration, and expert review of Australia's Military Ethics Doctrine. She previously contributed to the SEARBO project supporting rules-based order in Southeast Asia.
Through her UN ESCAP collaboration and government engagements in Asia-Pacific, Erskine actively shapes policy frameworks for AI governance while maintaining academic leadership through editorial roles and international fellowship networks spanning Oxford, Cambridge, WZB Berlin, and RMIT University.
