Katrina Elliot Myerson

Katrina Elliot Myerson is a lawyer and international humanitarian protection specialist with approximately 10 years of experience in conflict and emergency settings. After working in the legal and academic sectors, Katrina focussed on her career in the humanitarian arena, where she has worked with NGOs, UN agencies and the International Committee of the Red Cross. She has been based in a range of countries including Papua New Guinea, Haiti, The Democratic Republic of the Congo, Jordan (Syrian crisis response), Rwanda, Afghanistan, and Rakhine State, Myanmar.

Katrina has specialised in humanitarian protection in conflict and post-conflict contexts. This has included work focussing on the conditions and treatment of detainees and prisoners or war, and on conduct of hostilities and the impact of conflict on civilian populations.

In between international missions, Katrina has also worked with the Australian Red Cross, including roles in International Humanitarian Law, immigration detention monitoring, and in a senior national policy position for Migration Support Programs. She also has extensive experience in capacity building activities, and training design and facilitation.

Katrina is currently researching the factors that influence the success of civilian communities in engaging with armed actors for protection from atrocities.

Her research expertise includes: 

• Protection of civilians; 
• Community self-protection; 
• Atrocity prevention;  
• Engagement with armed actors and humanitarian diplomacy,
• Humanitarian responses in conflict.