Dr. Rebecca Monson

Biography

Rebecca's teaching and research focus on social difference, natural resource governance, and justice systems, particularly in Australia and the Pacific. Her work is influenced by fields such as law, development, transnational feminisms, legal geography, and political ecology. Rebecca's early empirical accounts of climate displacement and relocation in the Pacific led to the development of the Solomon Islands relocation guidelines in 2022. Her book 'Gender, Property Politics Pacific' (Cambridge 2023) examines land struggles and gender relations across multiple scales and was awarded the 2023 Australian Legal Research Awards prize. Currently, she holds an ARC DECRA fellowship to examine how Pacific women’s movements mobilize natural resource rights. Rebecca regularly provides advice on customary and informal justice systems, resource governance, climate adaptation, and disaster risk reduction to aid donors, government agencies, and international organizations working in the Australian Pacific region. She has experience working with collaborative teams and organizations such as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and International Development Law Organization. Prior to ANU, Rebecca was a researcher with the Bushfire Cooperative Research Centre and worked as a solicitor specializing in emergency services law, as well as collaborating with major law firms and international NGOs on housing and property rights research.

Research Interests