Karl Vatzlavik is a professional military officer with notable operational command and leadership experience. Throughout his career he has developed his practical knowledge of the application of International Humanitarian Law, along with the real-world implementation of Defence strategic policy. He is currently undertaking his PhD at Adelaide University. His research examines the armed conflict resolution practices of the Yolŋu Aboriginal people, which offers a valuable opportunity to enrich contemporary approaches to the regulation of armed conflict and peacebuilding. His thesis seeks to understand the cultural context in which these rules existed by analysing the historical social and political institutions that shaped their development and aims to draw lessons from them in relation to modern frameworks of armed conflict resolution and International Humanitarian Law. Karl is also a lead researcher on the Australian Red Cross research project: Lores of War – Indigenous Australian approaches to regulating violence. At UNSW Canberra, Karl is a member of MERLIN and is interested in the intersection between military law and ethics.