National and Global Security Program
About the National and Global Security Program
Defence and security are core priorities in national and global governance. In Australia, national security law has rapidly developed into a field in its own right, with almost 100 separate pieces of legislation enacted since the terrorist attacks on the US on September 11, 2001. At the same time, the face of war is changing. Contemporary and potential future conflicts involve new domains of warfare, irregular actors, novel capabilities and new tactics. Much of this is driven by advances in technology which impact threats and responses across the security and defence contexts.
While protecting security is a paramount concern, security law has a unique capacity to support far-reaching and secretive state powers and to undermine fundamental human rights and civil liberties. Rigorous and continual review therefore needed to ensure they remain necessary, effective and well-designed to avoid unjustified infringement on basic values, principles, norms and rights.
The National and Global Security Program draws on UQ’s broad and deep expertise in these fields to strive towards the protection of national and global security through effective, targeted, evidence-informed measures, and to help ensure those measures don’t unduly interfere with core principles or fundamental human rights. This program brings together experts in international law, constitutional law, criminal procedure and evidence law, comparative law and more, in order to provide sophisticated and up-to-date analyses of contemporary issues. Those issues span traditional threats and defence paradigms, to contemporary and emerging issues such as espionage, foreign interference, high-risk offenders, cyber-threats, and right-wing extremism.
2. Educational function
The National and Global Security Program plays a central role in fostering interdisciplinary learning and research across the Law School, the Faculty, the wider University, and the broader legal community. Serving as a collaborative hub for those engaged in the study of national security and international law, the Program supports a suite of advanced coursework and research initiatives.
Key educational offerings include postgraduate courses such as Laws of Armed Conflict (LAWS7711) and undergraduate subjects like National Security Law (LAWS5115) at the University of Queensland, alongside cross-institutional engagement through subjects such as National Security and Press Freedom (LAWS90238) in the Melbourne Law School Masters Program.
The Program brings together students from various disciplines—including law, political science, and international studies—to critically engage with the complex intersections between legal frameworks and issues of national and international security. This educational function directly complements the Program’s research mission by supporting graduate research training outcomes, fostering student-led inquiry, and promoting the dissemination of scholarly work produced through both coursework and collaborative research.
