Our People

Professor Philip E. Steinberg, Director

Phil Steinberg joined IBRU in September 2013 as Director. He has written extensively on the history of the law of the sea and its development in the context of regional and global uses and perceptions of maritime space. Phil has published widely on this topic and in related areas of communications law and Polar politics, with research funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, the European Commission, the Leverhulme Trust, and the International Council for Canadian Studies. He has authored six books including, most recently, Contesting the Arctic: Politics and Imaginaries in the Circumpolar North (IB Tauris/Bloomsbury, 2015) and Territory Beyond Terra (Rowman & Littlefield, 2018). He also directs the Durham Arctic Research Centre for Training and Interdisciplinary Collaboration (DurhamARCTIC), a research centre that administers a grant from the Leverhulme Trust supporting 15 PhD students across seven disciplines. Phil holds a PhD in Geography from Clark University.

• Personal web page
• External web page
• Email Philip Steinberg

Liz Buxton, External Relations & Marketing Manager

Liz coordinates IBRU's international activities, including conferences and training workshops. She is the main point of contact for visitors and new business enquiries and is responsible for all IBRU communications and website activities. 

• Email Liz Buxton

Steering Committee 

IBRU's steering committee consists of: 

• Professor Louise Amoore, Professor of Political Geography
• Professor Gavin Bridge, Department of Geography
• Dr Henry Jones, Associate Professor of Law  and Associate Director of IBRU
• Dr Lauren Martin, Associate Professor of Geography
• Dr Olivia Woolley, Associate Professor in Biolaw