James Cockayne

Head of Office, UN University

James Cockayne is a strategist, international lawyer, and writer. He focuses on the role of non-state armed groups in the international arena. A visiting lecturer at Columbia University, a Hauser scholar at New York University School of Law, and a University Medalist in government and public administration at the University of Sydney, Dr. Cockayne has worked in public service, academia, and advocacy. He was Co-Director of the Center on Global Counterterrorism Cooperation, leading their work in New York and Africa. Earlier, he served as Principal Legal Officer in the Transnational Crime and Extradition Units in the Australian Attorney-General’s Department, as Chair of the Editorial Committee of the Journal of International Criminal Justice, and also as a civil society member of the multi-stakeholder group that established an oversight mechanism for the International Code of Conduct for Private Security Providers. Dr. Cockayne has also been a consultant and adviser to the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the World Bank, the Center on Humanitarian Dialogue, International Alert, the Norwegian Peacebuilding Forum, the Conflict Prevention and Peace Forum, and the Global Leadership Forum.