James Ron

James Ron "earned a PhD in sociology from U.C. Berkeley in 1999, and joined the Norman Paterson School for International Affairs in early 2006.

"Prior to that, he held a Canada Research Chair at McGill University (2001-06) and was assistant professor of sociology at Johns Hopkins University (1999-01). In the 1990s, he held doctoral and postdoctoral fellowships at the Brookings Institution and Brown University...

"Since 2005, Ron and his students have interviewed over 140 Southern rights activists from 45 countries, asking questions about their organizations' political economy, social relations, and institutional origins. The results of those structured and semi-structured interviews will be ready for analysis in January 2009, and preliminary findings suggest the importance of relations with organized religion. Future research may include fieldwork in India, Mexico and Turkey...

"In years past, Ron's research focused on political violence in Israel/Palestine, the former Yugoslavia, Congo-Brazzaville, and Peru; the role of natural resources in conflict; and the dynamics of humanitarian aid contracting in areas of armed conflict.

"Ron has worked since 1992 as an occasional research consultant to Human Rights Watch, and is a member of their Canadian Council. He has also carried out research for the International Committee of the Red Cross and CARE.

"He now lives in Ottawa with his wife, Emma Naughton, and their two children, Tessa and Sacha."

He "is now beginning a project for the human rights division of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)."


 * Full Member, McGill Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism