Dr Zotto holds a PhD specializing in Diplomatic History and is a lecturer in the Department of History at the College of Humanities which he represents in the UDASA Executive Committee. He was born in a small civilised village, Liuli, located along Lake Nyasa in the modern-day Nyasa district, Ruvuma Region. James was educated in Mwongozo Primary School, Lundo Day Secondary School, Ilboru Secondary School and University of Dar es Salaam.

His research areas include diplomatic and military studies, International Relations, legal history, and Lake Nyasa corridor socio-economic and political formations and transformations. Zotto teaches, trains, researches, consults and supervises students in varied disciplines. He has served as an External Examiner and Reviewer of graduate theses. James has been involved in the Malawi-Tanzania border dispute negotiations and was a member of the fact-finding team related to the Malawi-Tanzania border.

Dr Zotto is experienced in conducting national and international researches. He has published articles and policy brief, including Colonial Cartography and the Mandate System: Implications for the Malawi-Tanzania Border Dispute; Management of Border Dispute: The Quest for Policy Interventions; Management of the Border Disputes in Africa; Explaining the Malawi-Tanzania Border Dispute: An Extension of the Normative Theory; Policing during the Covid-19 Pandemic: Ensuring Police and Public Safety in Uganda; and The Impact of Covid 19 on Public Opinion towards Law Enforcement Officers in Uganda. James is engaged in the non-profit community and religious issues serving as fundraising organizer and member of the steering committee for the establishment of the College of Professional Studies of the Anglican Church of Tanzania, Diocese of Dar es Salaam.

Dr Zotto provides training to senior staff of governmental and international organisations under the United Nations University for Peace (UPEACE), in the following centres: Police Staff and Senior Command College, Bwebajja-Uganda, University of Hargeisa-Somaliland, Somalia Disaster Resilience Institute-Mogadishu, UPEACE Cameroon, and UPEACE Addis Ababa.

Dr Zotto provides high-level training and counsel on International Political Economy of Conflict and Security, International Security, Water and Environmental Security, Human Rights, Conflict Mediation, Resolution and Management in Africa, and Post-conflict Reconstruction and Development.