Dr Tim Lindgren (University of Amsterdam) is a Visiting Fellow at the ANU College of Law. In this interview he discusses his research interests, why he was motivated to come to ANU and what is next for him beyond his fellowship.

What are your research interests?

My research lies at the intersection of public international law, the environment and colonialism, with a particular attention to the performance of international law in informal spaces. At the University of Amsterdam, I am developing a project that theorises the relationship between place and international law. The project is concerned with how different understandings of place shape debates on State obligations for climate change with a specific focus on international courts and tribunals. In my doctoral research, I explored the International Rights of Nature Tribunal and international law. The project traced a series of international legal practices and procedures that are operationalised alongside the Westphalian international legal order, and considered what this peoples' tribunal visualises about the discipline of international law and its relation with the environment. 

What motivated you to come to the ANU College of Law as a Visiting Fellow?

I came to the ANU College of Law because of the rich intellectual environment and its importance to my work. I was very interested in working and thinking with several scholars at the College, such as Dr Ntina Tzouvala, Professor Rebecca Monson, Dr Wanshu Cong, Professor Desmond Manderson and Dr Nina Araneta-Alana. I have drawn a lot of inspiration from their work, and the opportunity to have sustained conversations about international law, environment, colonialism and art seemed critical to the development of my new project. I was also interested in engaging with the broader ANU community. So spending several weeks here as a visitor seemed like an excellent opportunity – and so far, it has been wonderful.

How have you found your time so far at the College?

The Visiting Fellowship has been absolutely outstanding so far. The academic engagement from members across the College has been warm and generative, and incredibly rewarding for my research. I have had several formative conversations, some of which might materialise in collaborative projects in the future. I have also enjoyed the opportunity to test out Canberra’s food and art scene. Places such as Bar Rochford and the National Gallery of Australia are now favourites. Beyond that, simply being so close to nature is wonderful. The College has looked after us phenomenally well and I feel very privileged to have the opportunity to be here.

Your visitor's seminar is entitled The ‘Nature’ of Peoples’ Institutions and International Law. Why have you chosen to speak on this topic? 

In my seminar, I unpacked the place of peoples’ tribunals – or what I call peoples’ institutions – in the international legal domain. These institutions, as I explored in my doctoral thesis, have a very peculiar place on the international legal arena. International law is a discipline of States, and these tribunals do not ‘fit’ easily within the international legal order. So what, then, do we make of the presence of institutions that claim to be constituted by the people, and claim to do some form of law in the international legal domain? I am currently returning to this project as I am intending to develop it as a book. I am finding the process both challenging and fascinating in the sense that it forces you to think carefully about how to articulate the project in the most coherent and generative way. So I wanted to seize the opportunity to explore it together with the community at the College and ANU, including members of the general public – which has indeed been very generative in pushing it in new directions.

What is next for you beyond your fellowship?

Great question. After the fellowship at ANU I will do a shorter visit to Melbourne Law School and Professor Sundhya Pahuja’s Laureate Program Global Corporations and International Law. After that, international human rights law and public international law teaching awaits at Amsterdam Law School. My aim is to spend the next several months further developing my new project on place and international law, which currently is taking me into the world of reparations for climate change. I also have a forthcoming collaborative project on the appearance of decolonial matters in international courts and tribunals, which will be made public soon.

Read Dr Tim Lindgren's profile.