Dr. Claire Charters is from Ngati Whakaue, Tuwharetoa, Nga Puhi and Tainui.
Claire’s research is in Indigenous peoples’ rights in international and constitutional law, often with a comparative focus, including the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, tikanga Māori and the state legal system, the relationship between human rights and Indigenous peoples' rights and on the legitimacy of Indigenous peoples' rights under international law. Claire is also working on a number of collaborative research projects. Claire's research is profiled here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DOHdhzQNu8.
Claire regularly speaks around the globe on International and constitutional law and Indigenous peoples. She has had visiting academic fellowships at the London School of Economics, Kansai University, the European University Institute, Yale, Osgoode Hall (York University, Toronto) and the University of Arizona. She teaches into an inter-sessional course at Columbia University.
Claire typically her academic research and teaching with advocacy for the rights of Indigenous peoples at the domestic and international levels, including in Cabinet appointments to scope and draft a national plan of action to realise the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, as a trustee on the UN Voluntary Fund for Indigenous Peoples (2014 - 2020) and as an advisor to the President of the UN General Assembly (2016 - 2017). From 2010-2013 Claire worked for the UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Indigenous Peoples and Minorities Section, focusing on the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Claire co-directs the Aotearoa New Zealand Centre for Indigenous Peoples and the Law, a leading university centre in Aotearoa focused on research, advocacy and leadership in Indigenous peoples' rights: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/law/our-research/research-centres/aotearoa-nzc-indigenous-peoples-law.html.
Claire is currently also the Rongomau Taketake at the NZ Human Rights Commission.
