Averell Schmidt is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Government and in the Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy. He studies international relations, with a focus on the politics of international law and organizations. He received his PhD from Harvard University in 2024, and joined Cornell in 2025 after completing a postdoctoral fellowship at Brown University.

Schmidt has two interrelated research agendas. One investigates how withdrawals from international organizations and multilateral treaties impact diplomatic relationships and the dynamics of international cooperation. The other examines the politics of human rights, with a focus on how international institutions affect human rights practices and how states contest these institutions. Across both agendas, his work is grounded in an interest in how norms and social processes shape international politics. 

Selected recent publications: 

• Damaged Relations: How Treaty Withdrawal Impacts International Cooperation, American Journal of Political Science, Vol. 69, No. 1 (January 2025), pp. 223-239.
• Gender and Transitional Justice: Explaining Global Trends, (with Kathryn Sikkink, Helen Clapp, and Daniel Marin-Lopez) International Journal of Transitional Justice, Vol. 18, No. 3 (November 2024), pp. 387-404.
• Treaty Withdrawal and the Development of International Law, Review of International Organizations, Vol. 19, No. 4 (October 2024), pp. 785-808.