James is originally from Wellington. He completed his Masters in Political Science, focusing on Child Soldiers, at Victoria University.

His career with UNICEF started in Cambodia, where he worked as a communications consultant in the area of child protection. He then worked in UNICEF's emergency operation in Darfur, Sudan, and is now based in Bangkok, Thailand.

"My work in Thailand often has me traveling all over the country, from isolated refugee camps along the mountainous Thai-Myanmar border in the north-west, to the violence-affected provinces in the far south. In my role as a Child Protection Officer in UNICEF Thailand, I oversee a project which works to ensure that children affected by conflict and violence are better protected through monitoring, reporting and service delivery.

I often visit some of the nine refugee camps in Thailand, which are home to 140,000 refugees who have fled the conflict in eastern Myanmar. I work with NGOs and UNHCR to ensure that refugee children are protected from violence, abuse, exploitation and neglect, by providing child protection services, referral systems, psychosocial activities, and support to separated and unaccompanied children.

For the past few years, on-going violence in the southern-most provinces of Thailand has had a serious impact on children's safety, education and wellbeing. Acts of violence - from shootings to bombings to the burning of schools - are an almost daily occurrence. Through meetings with government officials and youth groups in these provinces, and a situation analysis on children's perceptions of the violence that UNICEF is undertaking, we are working to address and respond to needs of children affected by the violence.

My work also takes me to the north of the country, to a settlement of over seven thousand ethnic Hmong, many of whom have fled from Lao PDR citing fear of persecution. They currently live in a temporary settlement whilst more durable solutions are found. As UNICEF is one of the few organizations permitted access to the settlement, I regularly monitor the situation there, as well as coordinate support to a NGO providing relief supplies and health services.

One of my main activities of late has been to work with the two main Non-State Actors in conflict with the Myanmar Government, to negotiate a commitment by the parties to stop the use of child soldiers. Both Non-State Actors have signed a deed of commitment and UNICEF will now work with them to further develop an action plan addressing the issue of child soldiers.

Through my work, I've been fortunate to travel all over Thailand and work with many different people, from government officials and military personnel, to refugees and humanitarian workers. The variety of people, places and issues ensures that my work is always interesting and challenging."

The UNICEF office in West Darfur, where James worked as a Child Protection Officer, operates under pressing conditions with on-going conflicts and insecurity in the region and limited accessibility. James focused on ensuring the protection of children who had been affected by the conflict. Many children in West Darfur have experienced some degree of trauma, either personally or through witnessing violence against family or friends. All children in the camps, a number of which have up to 100,000 inhabitants, have lost their homes and the security a ‘normal' lifestyle offers.

Of particular importance to the work James carried out was the setting up of Child Friendly Spaces within IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) camps. These spaces provide a protective environment for children, where they can interact and receive social and emotional support. Supervisors of the spaces are IDPs themselves, and have been trained in psycho-social support. The opportunity for children to express their experiences through art is vitally important, especially in an environment where any talking about trauma is culturally inappropriate. Large camps have up to ten child friendly spaces.

Raising awareness about the prevention and response to sexual violence was also a critical part of James's role. Due to the stigma surrounding rape it is important to raise awareness on the issue, and ensure that the survivors receive necessary emotional and medical support.

Other aspects of UNICEF ‘s operations in West Darfur include water and sanitation, health, education and nutrition.