Yossi Dahan

Yossi Dahan (Hebrew: יוסי דהאן, born 1954) is founder and chairman of the Adva Center, a lecturer in philosophy and law, and a leading activist on social justice issues in Israeli society.

Dahan earned his PhD at Columbia University under the supervision of Thomas Pogge. In 1991, Dahan was one of the founders of the Adva Center, a think tank for policy analysis of Israeli society from a social justice perspective, and since serves as its chairman. He is also a member of the Mizrahi Democratic Rainbow Coalition, a group that promotes equal rights for Israel's Mizrahi population (Jews originating from countries in Asia and North Africa). He was one of the petitioners in the successful Israeli Supreme Court lawsuit to stop the Israel Lands Administration from converting agricultural lands to non-agricultural use for the benefit of private developers. Dahan is a public representative in Israel's National Labor Court.

Having subsequently earned a law degree, Dahan lectures and heads the Human Rights Program at the Academic center for Law and Business at Ramat Gan. In a landmark case the program succeeded in its petition to the Israeli supreme court to repeal a law allowing the establishment of a private prison. He also teaches philosophy at Israel's Open University. His major areas of research include: political philosophy, theories of justice, education theory, International labor standards and global justice theories.

Dahan is the founder and editor of the alternative opinion website "Ha'Oketz" (The Sting), which he founded with his fellow scholar Ishak Saporta. The site addresses current political, social, economic and cultural topics in Israeli life from a critical viewpoint.

Read more about Yossi Dahan:  Selected Publications