Dr. Erin Pobjie

International Institute for Strategic Studies

Dr Erin Pobjie is Senior Fellow for Space at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) and leads the Institute’s Space Programme. She is an expert in space security and international law. Her current research focuses on the development of norms, rules and principles to reduce space threats, and the prevention of an arms race in outer space.

Erin’s experience spans academia, policy and practice. She is a senior research affiliate at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law and was previously an Assistant Professor at Essex Law School. Erin has held numerous prestigious fellowships, including at the Lauterpacht Center for International Law at the University of Cambridge, the International Criminal Court, the UN Institute for Disarmament Research and as a British Academy Global Innovation Fellow at the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP). 

Beyond space security, Erin is recognised internationally for her work on the use of force in international law. She serves as Co-Rapporteur of the International Law Association's Committee on the Use of Force and is the author of the award-winning book, Prohibited Force (Cambridge University Press, 2024). 

Erin holds a PhD (summa cum laude) in international law from the University of Cologne, an LLM in international human rights and humanitarian law (with Distinction) from the University of Essex, and a BA and LLB (Honours) from the University of Melbourne. She previously practiced commercial law in Melbourne, Australia.