About us
Our governance
Professor Brendan Taylor - Head of the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre
Brendan Taylor is Professor of Strategic Studies at SDSC and Head, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre. He is a specialist on great power strategic relations in the Asia-Pacific, East Asian ‘flashpoints’, and Asian security architecture.
His writings on these subjects have appeared in such leading journals as Survival, The Washington Quarterly, Australian Foreign Affairs, The Pacific Review, International Affairs and Review of International Studies. He is the author or editor of 12 books, including The Four Flashpoints: How Asia Goes to War (Black Inc, 2018) and Dangerous Decade: Taiwan’s Security and Crisis Management (IISS, 2019). He is a regular op-ed contributor to such publications as The Australian, Nikkei Asian Review, The Australian Financial Review, The Interpreter, East Asia Forum and The Strategist.
Dr Iain D. Henry - Program Convenor, Master of Strategic Studies
Professor Stephan Fruehling - Director of Research
Dr Stuti Bhatnagar - HDR Convenor
Professor John Blaxland - Masters Advanced Convenor
Dr Nicholas Chan - Honours Convenor
Former Heads of SDSC are a highly esteemed group of leading thinkers and educators who enjoyed distinguished careers in public service and academia. Learn more about our Former Heads of Centre.
Our mission
The Strategic & Defence Studies Centre (SDSC) is Australia’s largest body of scholars dedicated to the analysis of the use of armed force in its political context. As a leading international research institution specializing in strategy and defence, SDSC has a three-part mission:
To provide ‘real world’-focused strategic studies that is research-based, research-led and world-class. Our primary expertise within the broad field of Strategic Studies consists of three related research clusters: Australian defence, military studies, and Asia-Pacific security. Our scholarship in these areas is intended to be recognized internationally and of value to the Australian policy community; To prepare and educate the next generation of strategic leaders – military, civilian and academic – in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region by providing world-class graduate and undergraduate programs in strategic and defence studies; and to contribute toward a better-informed standard of public debate in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region using high-quality outreach and commentary on issues pertaining to our core areas of expertise.
Our vision
Founded in 1966, the Strategic & Defence Studies Centre is proud to be counted among the earliest generation of post-World War II research institutions dedicated to the analysis of the use of armed force in its political context. The Centre seeks to build upon our achievements over the past half century, and to play a leading role in shaping international strategic studies, policies and debates. Within the next decade, SDSC aims to position itself as the leading university-based institution for research, education, and outreach in strategic and defence issues in the Asia-Pacific region. In a fluid and fast-changing strategic milieu, we will invest in the strategic development of our research and teaching programs in order to play a leading role in defining Strategic Studies for our age. Our goal is to shape the areas of scholarship and policy-making which will inform the leadership of the Asia Pacific, and equip strategic planners and analysts to be bold and innovative in addressing the challenges of the future.
