James Brown

James Brown served as an officer in the Australian Army prior to joining the Lowy Institute. He commanded a cavalry troop in Southern Iraq, served on the Australian task force headquarters in Baghdad, and was attached to Special Forces in Afghanistan. He was awarded a commendation for work in the Solomon Islands and as an operational planner at the Australian Defence Force Headquarters Joint Operations Command. James also instructed at the Army’s Combat Arms Training Centre. James is the Military Fellow at the Lowy Institute and his research focuses on military issues and defence policy. He coordinates a project investigating the use of private military security companies in disaster and conflict zones. The first paper in this project, Pirates and Privateers: Managing the Indian Ocean’s Private Security Boom, was released in September 2012. James studied economics at the University of Sydney and completed graduate studies in strategy at the University of New South Wales.