Peace: Has International Law Lost its Way?
Lunch Seminar with Professor Treasa Dunworth, The University of Auckland
When: 18 August 2025, 1pm – 2pm
Where: Deakin Burwood Campus, LC7.032 Moot Court Boardroom or via Zoom
Peace: Has International Law Lost its Way?
In light of the on-going and seemingly endless wars in Ukraine and Gaza, the answer would seem to be “yes”.
But why and how has this happened? In attempting to answer these questions, I move beyond simplistic realist accounts of war in international relations and draw attention to the political economy of war as articulated by NtinaTzouvala, as well as exploring David Kennedy’s ‘managerial expertise’ thesis. Then, in an effort to change direction, I draw on the work of historian Rutger Bregman, who (in the context of climate change and global inequality) argues for what he calls ‘moral ambition’, and urges us to be more idealistic. In rising to meet his challenge, I point to the many lessons we can learn from earlier generations of anti-war and anti-militarist activists.
Professor Treasa Dunworth
Treasa is a Professor of Law at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. She has been involved in the disarmament sphere for 30 years. In that time, she has worked in the civil society sector, for an international organisation and (since 1999) as an academic. Her PhD, and subsequent monograph published by Cambridge University Press, critically examined the stories we tell about humanitarian disarmament.
If you would like to join, please email law-as-protection@deakin.edu.au