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Dr. Michael Kaufman    

Author, Co-founder of the White Ribbon Campaign & Advocate for Gender Equality

Michael Kaufman, PhD, is a writer of both fiction and non-fiction books. As an advisor, activist, and keynote speaker, he has developed innovative approaches to engage men and boys in promoting gender equality and positively transforming men's lives. Over the past four decades his work with the United Nations, governments, non-governmental organizations, corporations, trade unions, and universities has taken him to fifty countries.

Kaufman's most recent non-fiction book was "The Time Has Come. Why Men Must Join the Gender Equality Revolution." He is the author or editor of eight other books on gender issues, on democracy and development studies. He is the author of four novels, the award-winning "The Possibility of Dreaming on a Night Without Stars," "The Afghan Vampires Book Club," and the Jen Lu mystery series, "The Last Exit" and "The Last Resort."

Kaufman is the co-founder of the White Ribbon Campaign, the largest effort in the world of men working to end violence against women. He volunteers as a senior fellow at Promundo (Washington D.C.) and co-wrote its first State of the Worlds' Fathers Report. He advised the French government in 2019 and the Canadian government in 2018 as a member of their respective G7 Gender Equality Advisory Councils. In 2017 he was awarded Canada's Meritorious Service Cross.

His work in the UN system, including with UN WOMEN, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNDP, IFAD, ITC, and UNESCO has taken him to New York, Rome, Paris, Beijing, Katmandu, Ankara, Geneva, Nairobi, Jakarta, and Delhi. He has worked with numerous NGOs including OXFAM, International Red Cross, Save the Children, and Amnesty International, as well as with governments on six continents. He wrote the training program on sexual harassment used by tens of thousands of staff at the United Nations.

Kaufman previously taught at York University in Toronto where he was Deputy Director of the Centre for Research on Latin America and the Caribbean. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio and lived in Durham, North Carolina. He lives in Toronto, Canada, is married, and has a grown daughter and son.

Speech Topics

Man Talk! Ending Campus Sexual Assault & the Three Secrets of a Great Relationship.

Our campuses have a big problem. But the truth is that most men want good relationships (whether it’s for one-night or the rest of your life.) Campus men want the women we care about to feel safe. This talk, full of stories, humor, and packed with information, looks at the root causes of dating violence. It challenges stereotypes and the actions of some men, but does not dump on guys. It gives clear information about consent. It deals with serious issues, but it’s fun and very positive. It gets to the heart and soul (and, yes, other things) of how to build relationships that will make you feel good. A real crowd pleaser.

The Time Has Come! Men, Business, and the Gender Equality Advantage.

For too long we were told it was a battle of the sexes. For too long bringing equality between women and men to our workplaces, homes and communities seemed like a zero-sum game, with women winning and men losing. Even if this were true, supporting equality would be the right thing to do. But Michael Kaufman's work with corporations, governments, the UN, and NGOs over the past thirty-five years has shown this just isn't true—if we learn to manage it right. This talk, full of Michael's celebrated stories and humour, shows what men will gain by supporting equality. It shows the advantages that come to businesses and public institutions that embrace gender equality. It looks at the importance of corporate responsibility and leadership on issues ranging from ending violence against women to supporting the social and workplace changes that allow women and men to find work-life balance and to support the new parenting roles that men are playing. It's a fun and positive look of our own ideals of manhood that will give practical tools to leaders to bring into their own corporations...and lives.

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