Rohan Howitt

Rohan Howitt is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Centre for Environmental History at the Australian National University. His research focuses on the interconnected histories of Australia, Antarctica, and the islands of the Southern Ocean. He is currently working on two major research projects. The first, deriving from his doctoral research, traces the origins of the idea that Australian sovereignty extended south towards Antarctica. The second examines the global history of efforts to colonise and develop the subantarctic islands of the Southern Ocean and the emergence of conservation values and practices in this region.

Research projects / interests:

• History of Antarctic science and exploration
• History of polar sovereignty claims
• History of colonisation projects in the subantarctic islands
• History of conservation practices in the subantarctic

Areas of interest:

• Polar Governance
• Antarctic Treaty System
• History
• Polar Policy
• Geopolitics
• Environment

Keywords: Antarctic history, subantarctic, Southern Ocean, colonialism, empire, sovereignty, development, conservation, environmental governance