Melissa Conley Tyler

Melissa Conley Tyler
Biography
Publications

Melissa Conley Tyler is Program Lead with the Asia-Pacific Development, Diplomacy & Defence Dialogue.

For 13 years she served as National Executive Director of the Australian Institute of International Affairs, an independent international policy institute established as a branch of Chatham House in 1924, with close links to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Under her leadership, the AIIA was recognised for three years running as the top think tank in Southeast Asia/Pacific and one of the top 50 think tanks worldwide in the University of Pennsylvania’s Global Go To Think Tanks Index, the only comprehensive ranking exercise. In 2017, she co-authored Think Tank Diplomacy, the first book-length discussion of the role of policy institutes in the international sphere.

She joined the University of Melbourne in 2019 as Director of Diplomacy at Asialink and then as a Research Fellow/Associate in the Asia Institute. Most recently she was a visiting fellow in Taiwan at the Ministry of Defense’s think tank – the Institute of Defense and National Security Research – funded by a Ministry of Foreign Affairs Taiwan Fellowship.

Melissa has extensive experience establishing and sustaining Australia-Asia engagement through Track II dialogues involving government officials, academics, media and business. She is a lawyer and specialist in conflict resolution, including negotiation, mediation and peace education, who worked as program manager of the University of Melbourne’s International Conflict Resolution Centre and Senior Fellow of Melbourne Law School.  Melissa is a prolific commentator with expertise in Australian foreign policy, Australia’s key relationships across Asia and the practice of diplomacy.

Was 2020 Australia’s peak?
Was 2020 Australia’s peak?
The idea was to chart future goals. Looking back, has the global ambition from the “Australia 2020 Summit” stacked up?
Pacifying Australia-China relations
Pacifying Australia-China relations
Cooperation in the Pacific Islands would be valuable precisely because it is difficult.
Korea-Japan tensions, as seen in the suburbs of Brisbane 
Korea-Japan tensions, as seen in the suburbs of Brisbane 
When Toowong briefly hit the headlines in South Korea, it signalled another test for Australia’s regional engagement.
The Indo-Pacific is the New Asia
The Indo-Pacific is the New Asia
The terms of the debate might be finally settled, but the contest will go on. And on.
From fill-in to full-time Foreign Minister
From fill-in to full-time Foreign Minister
Marise Payne’s experience in defence and security has been obvious, but what more will drive her diplomacy?
Culture cringe: Laughter links Australia and Asia
Culture cringe: Laughter links Australia and Asia
Field research on Asian comedians’ views of Australia reveals some surprising commonalities.
The movie moment: how the Oscars reflect the world around us
The movie moment: how the Oscars reflect the world around us
Oscar nominees are a window into current concerns and preoccupations: what strikes a chord and the issues of our time.
Perspectives on “rules-based international order”
Perspectives on “rules-based international order”
Three fault lines – nostalgia, challengers, and alternatives – seem to divide views on the global politics catchcry.
International vulnerabilities and opportunities for Australia’s universities
International vulnerabilities and opportunities for Australia’s universities
Universities need to accept their vulnerability to internationalisation in order to prepare students for the future.
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