James Ron

Areas of Expertise

International democratization and conflict, rights-based organizations, international access to medicine, human rights, and civil society in the Global South

Biography

James Ron is the Harold E. Stassen Chair of International Affairs at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs and Department of Political Science, and a visiting professor at Mexico's CIDE research institute for the 2011-12 academic year.

Previously, Jim worked at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs in Ottawa (2006-11); served as Canada Research Chair at McGill University (2001-06); and assistant professor at Johns Hopkins University (1999-01).

Jim was born in the United States in 1967, spent 16 years in Israel (1977-93), and earned a PhD in Sociology from University of California Berkeley in 1999. He worked for the Associated Press in Jerusalem and for Human Rights Watch in Israel, Palestine, Turkey, Nigeria, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, and Albania. He has consulted for the International Committee of the Red Cross in Geneva and the former Yugoslavia, for CARE in Africa, and for the International Diabetes Federation's Life for a Child Program in India and Mexico. While teaching in Ottawa, Jim worked in applied policy research with support from Canadian government agencies.

Jim publishes in scholarly and popular venues. His book on state violence appeared in 2003, and he is now writing a second book about rights-based organizations in the global south. With colleagues, he is also completing a series of statistical analyses of human rights reporting by Amnesty International and the western media. Earlier, he published on democratization and conflict, militias and oil in Africa, terrorism in Peru, and the organizational dynamics of humanitarian aid.

After his son was diagnosed in 2009 with Type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease, Jim began studying the condition's management in the developing world with partners from Canada, India, and Australia. With support from Life for a Child, a program of the International Diabetes Federation, Jim helps raise funds for the Dream Trust, an Indian charity that provides free insulin to children with Type 1 diabetes.

Jim is married to Emma Naughton, and they have two children; four-year-old Sacha, and eight-year-old Tessa. They currently live in Mexico City.

More information is on his website: www.jamesron.com.

Courses Taught

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For syllabi for the current or upcoming semester, please visit the University of Minnesota's Course Guide and look for the syllabus icon. If the syllabus is not there, contact the instructor directly. Syllabi are available in alternative formats upon request. Please contact Jeremy Gordon at gord0215@umn.edu or 612-624-7095 for assistance.

Spring 2012

• PA 5801: Global Public Policy