Latin American and Human Rights; Conflict Resolution; Israeli and Palestinian Refugees

Edward (Edy) Kaufman was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He completed the first two years of Political Science and Diplomacy at the Universidad del Litoral (Rosario) and the School of Architecture (Buenos Aires), and then came to live in Israel. Kaufman holds BA and MA degrees in Political Science, International Relations and Sociology from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and a doctorate in diplomatic history from the University of Paris and conducted post-doctoral studies in quantitative social research methods at the University of Michigan. 

Edy was the first to introduce the subject of human rights within the teaching of the social sciences at Hebrew University and UCLA and has dedicated a great part of his time in the teaching and training of conflict resolution in Israel and worldwide, lecturing in more than forty countries and fifty two universities within the United States and Canada. He is the author and editor of thirteen books and close to seventy academic articles, including co-authoring with eight Palestinian colleagues. 

Through his involvement in human rights and peace organizations, Edy has contributed to the ‘international citizens lobby’ on both issues. He has committed himself to the protection of human rights within Israel he has been Honorary Secretary of the Public Council for Jews in the Arab Countries. At the global level Edy was the founder of Amnesty International in Jerusalem and spent a sabbatical working at the International Secretariat, later to become one of the longest serving members of Nobel Peace laureate organization’s International Executive Committee.

Contact: Ekaufman@cidcm.umd.edu