Rebecca Brown, a PhD candidate at the University of Cambridge, has won the 2023 Australian Year Book of International Law (AYBIL) and Australian and New Zealand Society of International Law (ANZSIL) Student Paper Prize for her essay, Australia's Approach to Health Governance: Quarantine, and its Global Implications.

In her essay, Rebecca explores the interaction between Australia’s approach to health governance in domestic law and policy, and governmental priorities when negotiating international instruments.

In this Q&A, Rebecca discusses her inspiration for the paper, influential scholars in her field, and her thoughts on winning the prize.

Can you share a bit about yourself including your full name, degree and aspirations after graduation?

My name is Rebecca Brown, and I am currently in the second year of my PhD in law at the University of Cambridge. My doctoral project focuses on the negotiation of international health instruments: it considers how multilateral cooperation might be effected, and how stakeholders might curate the negotiation process to facilitate meaningful and effective outcomes in the health sphere. I am interested in pursuing my academic interests after graduation, integrated into legal practice in relevant areas.

What inspired you to explore your essay topic?

The central impetus for my paper was the COVID-19 pandemic, which made obvious the fundamental flaws within the global health governance system. In 2020, following the completion of my Master of Laws at Cambridge, I worked as a research assistant for my now-supervisor, Professor Eyal Benvenisti, on international legal issues arising in the context of the pandemic. This experience, in turn, inspired my broader academic interest in health law.

I was prompted to explore this topic in particular by my personal experiences of the pandemic, as an Australian living and studying in the United Kingdom. Australia’s strict border closures de facto prevented me from returning home. Most flights were cancelled, and, when available, were unaffordable on a student income; the requirement of paid hotel quarantine was similarly prohibitive.

It was also thought-provoking to watch the UK consider – and then critique on human rights grounds – policies similar to those adopted by Australia. This observation led me to question the role of disease and health governance within the Australian legal imagination.

What are some of the key arguments of your essay?

My paper explores the interaction between Australia’s approach to health governance in domestic law and policy, and governmental priorities when negotiating international instruments. Its core argument is that Australian state and federal governments have historically adopted an approach to health governance almost entirely focused on quarantine.

This pattern can be traced back to early colonial appraisals of Australia as a ‘young’ and ‘clean’ land – without a history of the communicable diseases that had ravaged Europe – and as an isolated island, such that this status of ‘cleanliness’ might plausibly be maintained.

However, even as time and technology removed this distance, this mentality persisted. This approach is also apparent in Australia’s participation in global health governance, in turn impacting the development of a global cooperative system. For example, Australia was the only country to opt out of the 1969 International Health Regulations, on the basis that this instrument conflicted with the Quarantine Act 1908 (Cth).

Are there any scholars who have been influential to you throughout your own law studies?

I have been fortunate to receive much mentoring, support and inspiration from a great number of scholars. I am particularly grateful to my PhD supervisors, Professor Eyal Benvenisti and Professor Michael Waibel, and my advisor, Professor Jorge Viñuales. They not only model exemplary academic legal scholarship, but have also routinely helped me clarify and improve my research.

I am also thankful to those who have kindly taken the time to discuss my work, especially Dr Rumiana Yotova, Dr Andrew Sanger and Associate Professor Jonathan Liberman. I am similarly indebted to my mentors closer to home: in particular, Professor Mary Crock and Professor Tim Stephens at the University of Sydney who have encouraged and supported me in pursuing graduate studies and developing my scholarship.

What does it mean to you to be awarded the winner of the AYBIL/ANZSIL Student Paper Prize?

I am thrilled to receive the AYBIL/ANZSIL Student Paper Prize. I hold both the AYBIL and ANZSIL in high esteem, and it is a great honour for my paper to be recognised by these organisations. As an early-career scholar, this recognition – as well as the generous offer of publication by AYBIL – is both affirming and beneficial for my future academic pursuits.

I am also very appreciative of the Prize Committee and the anonymous reviewer, whose excellent comments will greatly improve my paper for publication. I look forward to sharing my work, and hopefully engaging in further conversation about these issues: such collaborations are increasingly important as new health instruments – such as the Pandemic Treaty – are negotiated.

The AYBIL/ANZSIL Student Paper Prize is awarded to the best paper submitted by a student on any topic in the field of public or private international law that complies with the eligibility criteria. Learn more information about the prize, here.