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STAFF OF THE UNIT
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Patron |
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The Unit's Patron is Graça Machel.
Graça Machel
(Photo: Copyright © UNICEF/HQ95-0948/Grossman)
A personal note from Graça Machel
(Source: Unicef)
In 1994, Graça Machel's reputation as an educator and children's champion led United Nations
Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali to name her the Expert in charge of producing a ground-breaking report on the impact of armed conflict on children. The report was requested in late 1993
by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and the General Assembly. Ms. Machel served as Mozambique's first post-independence
Minister for Education and within 10 years, school enrolment had doubled to over 80 per cent of school-age children. She
continues to be active in reconstruction and development initiatives in Mozambique. She is President of the Foundation of
Community Development and Chairperson of the National Organization of Children of Mozambique. She has worked closely with many
UN organizations and was awarded the 1995 Nansen Medal in recognition of her outstanding contributions on behalf of refugee
children. She is the widow of the country's first President, Samora Machel, killed in an airplane crash in 1986...
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Directors |
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Joint Directors of the Children and Armed Conflict Unit are Carolyn Hamilton, Director of the Children's Legal Centre, and Françoise Hampson, Professor of Law at the University of Essex.
Carolyn Hamilton is the Director of the Children's Legal Centre, an independent charity based at the University of Essex dedicated
to the promotion of children’s rights. She is also a Reader in the Law Department at the University and a Barrister practicing from
1, Garden Court, Family Law Chambers. She has acted as an expert for the United Nations in the field of juvenile justice and, more
particularly, representing the rights of children in armed conflict. She is a member of the UK Advisory Board for the UK Report to
the Committee on the Rights of the Child and has acted as a consultant to a number of national and international bodies. She set up
a free legal advocacy service for children in education disputes and represents children at tribunals and in the higher courts. She
contributed a study paper to the Machel Report on Humanitarian Law and Children’s Rights. She has been working in Kosovo where she
has been carrying out an assessment of children’s needs and the response of humanitarian organisations for the Children and Armed
Conflict Unit. She reported her findings to the UK government and the UN Special Representative on Children in Armed Conflict. She
has published widely in the field of child law and is author of Family, Law and Religion, and Family Law in Europe.
Françoise J. Hampson is a Professor of Law at the University of Essex. Since graduating from the University
of Newcastle upon Tyne, she has taught at the University of Dundee and the University of Essex. She is a member of the UN Sub-Commission
on the Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities and a governor of the British Institute of Human Rights. She is a member
of the group of experts for the ICRC study on customary law. She takes part in training sessions under the aegis of UNHCR, the Council
of Europe and the course for military officers at the International Institute of Humanitarian Law. She has represented applicants before
the European Commission and Court of Human Rights. She contributed one of the reports for the Machel study. She represented Oxfam and
SCF (UK) at the Prep.Com. and first session of the Review Conference for the Certain Conventional Weapons Convention. Her publications
are mainly in the fields of the law of armed conflicts and human rights law.
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Head, International and Research |
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Kirsten Anderson is the Head, International and Research.
Kirsten joined the Children's Legal Centre in 2007. She carries out research projects in the areas of
child rights and child law both in the UK and abroad and undertakes policy
work in these fields.
Kirsten is an experienced socio-legal researcher who
has practical knowledge of designing research methodologies and tools
(including the adaptation and development of indicators); collecting, collating
and analysing quantitative and qualitative data; conducting monitoring and
evaluation; and training in research, monitoring and evaluation.
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Research and Projects Manager |
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Ruth Barnes is the Research and Projects Manager.
Ruth is a qualified attorney and member of the California State Bar. She joined the Children's Legal Centre after graduating from Stanford Law School in California, U.S. While at law school, Ruth focused her educational and extra-curricular efforts on
international human rights and children’s rights law. She is particularly interested in the area of special educational needs and, at law school, participated in litigation on
behalf of students with disabilities. She was also heavily involved in issues of juvenile justice and ran a programme through which law students taught detained juveniles their legal rights.
Ruth’s work at the Centre includes legal and thematic research and legislative analysis and she provides support for several programmes within the International Section. Ruth helps to organise and run the ongoing internship programme for LLM and MA students at the University of Essex’s Human Rights Centre and she is also involved in developing the Children and Armed Conflict Unit Website and in providing support for the International Network of Child Law Centres.
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