Dr. Silja Bára Ómarsdóttir is Professor of International Affairs at the Faculty of Political Science at the University of Iceland. Her research mainly focuses on Icelandic society and politics, reproductive rights, Iceland’s foreign and security policy and feminist international relations. She is engaged in numerous research projects on feminist foreign policy, peace studies, resilience, and societal security. Ómarsdóttir is a member of the Nordic Women Mediators Network and the was elected Chairman of the Icelandic Red Cross in 2022.

Before joining academia she worked at Iceland’s Centre for Gender Equality and was a delegate in the 2011 Constitutional Council, which submitted a revised constitution to Iceland’s parliament in 2011. Ómarsdóttir has served on various committees for gender equality, including Iceland’s Gender Equality Council, the National Committee of UNIFEM, the Icelandic Feminist Association, as well as the Icelandic Women’s Rights Association.

Ómarsdóttir holds a PhD in Government from University College Cork, an MA in International Relations from University of Southern California, a BA in International affairs from Lewis & Clark College and two post-graduate certificates from the University of Iceland.