Dr David Hammond began his career as mathematics and science educator. Between 2001 and 2005 he was a scientific officer in the Australian Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO). In this role David worked a large-scale projects to inform strategic procurement requirements for the Australian Government. He also worked on tactical and operational studies for the Australian Defence Force.
After completing his Masters of Science (Operations Analysis and Statistics), David was offered a scholarship from the University of Portsmouth to undertake a PhD in economics in 2005. Finishing in 2008 David returned to Sydney to take up an analyst position at a Defence contractor. During his time here he commenced studies toward a Masters of International Law at the University of Sydney.
Since 2012 David has worked as a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Economics and Peace contributing to the annual releases Global Peace Index, the Positive Peace Index and the Global Terrorism Index. David is a Visiting Research Fellow at King’s College London and was appointed Research Director at IEP in 2018.