Founder / Director

Josie Lehrer, ScD is Founder/Director of the Men's Story Project. She holds a doctoral degree from the Harvard School of Public Health and completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at the UC-San Francisco Center for AIDS Prevention Studies. Over the years, her research and applied work in the U.S. and Latin America has focused on the prevention of HIV/STI and gender-based violence, and the promotion of healthy masculinities and gender equality. Josie has consulted with organizations including San Francisco Women Against Rape and World Vision International, and currently facilitates social support groups for young adults living with HIV/AIDS in San Francisco. Josie has received awards including the UCSF Chancellor's Award for Public Service, and her work has been highlighted through media including CNN Headline News and Forbes.com. She is a singer/songwriter, and her family is from Chile.

Advisory Council

Ori Brafman is a lifelong entrepreneur in business, government, and the nonprofit sector. His projects include launching healthy fast food restaurants, leading political and advocacy campaigns, and co-founding Courtroom Connect, a wireless network company. In 2001, Ori co-founded a network of more than 1000 CEOs working for peace and economic development projects, which has catalyzed initiatives in the Middle East, Africa, North America, Europe and Asia. Ori's first book, The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations, was released in October 2006 and is currently in its 16th printing (Penguin Portfolio). Ori’s second book, Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior, was published in 2008 by Doubleday. Ori has appeared on BBC, National Public Radio, Wall Street Journal/MarketWatch video, CSPAN and National-Cable-Radio, among others. He has presented at organizations including Microsoft, Amazon, Televisa, and Stanford and Harvard Business Schools. Ori holds a BA in Peace and Conflict Studies from UC-Berkeley and an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Debra Chasnoff is an Academy Award–winning documentary filmmaker, a nationally-recognized champion of using film as an organizing tool for social justice campaigns, and a pioneer in the international movement to create safe and welcoming schools and communities. Debra’s acclaimed documentaries addressing youth and bias issues are widely hailed by educators and advocates as among the best tools available today to help open up dialogue and activism around many of the most challenging issues affecting young people’s lives and school environments. Her most recent film is Straightlaced—How Gender’s Got Us All Tied Up, about gender and sexuality pressures that teens and young adults face today.  Her other award-winning films include It’s Elementary—Talking About Gay Issues in School, Let’s Get Real (about bias and bullying) That’s a Family! (supporting youth growing up in diverse family structures) and the Academy Award-winning Deadly Deception—General Electric, Nuclear Weapons and Our Environment.  Her first film, Choosing Children, explores the once unheard-of idea that lesbians and gay men can become parents after coming out.

Shari Dworkin, PhD, MS is an Associate Professor of Sociology in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the Universiyt of California, San Francisco, School of Nursing. She is the Director of Doctoral Studies in Sociology and an Affiliated Faculty Member at the UCSF Center for AIDS Prevention Studies. Her research centers on four main areas: (1) the intersection of economic empowerment and HIV/AIDS prevention for at-risk women (2) masculinities, anti-violence, and HIV/AIDS prevention (3) global HIV/AIDS policies and (4) media, culture, sport, and the body. Her published work has appeared in the American Journal of Public Health; Culture, Health, and Sexuality; Gender & Society; Journal of Sex Research; Archives of Sexual Behavior; PLOs Medicine; American Journal of Community Psychology, and Hastings International & Comparative Law Review. Her forthcoming book is titled Men at Risk: Gender Relations and HIV/AIDS Prevention (NYU Press). Dworkin holds a Master’s degree in Biostatistics from the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and a PhD in Sociology from the University of Southern California.

Riane Eisler, JD, is president of the Center for Partnership Studies. Her multidisciplinary research analyzes social systems utilizing a new method of inquiry, the study of relational dynamics, to identify underlying patterns in societies cross-culturally and historically. Her books, drawing from the innovative conceptual framework of partnership and domination systems introduced by her work, include The Real Wealth of Nations, Tomorrow’s Children and The Chalice and the Blade (translated into most European languages as well as Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Hebrew and Urdu). She has written over 300 articles for scholarly and popular journals and books, teaches about her work at the California Institute of Integral Studies, and keynotes conferences worldwide. She has received many awards, including honorary PhDs, for her contributions to advancing peace, social responsibility and human rights (e.g. her pioneering work to include women’s and children’s rights in human rights theory and practice). Her work highlights the importance of understanding and changing gender roles and relations in building a more equitable and peaceful world. Her most recent focus is on developing new social and economic measurements that give visibility and adequate value to the work of caring and caregiving for sustainability and long-term economic success as we shift from the industrial to the post-industrial era. For more information, see www.partnershipway.org.

Jackson Katz, PhD is internationally recognized for his groundbreaking work in gender violence prevention education with men and boys, particularly in the sports culture and the military. An educator, author and filmmaker, Katz is co-founder of the Mentors in Violence Prevention program at Northeastern University's Center for the Study of Sport in Society. MVP is the most widely utilized sexual and domestic violence prevention program in professional and college athletics. It has been implemented by seven NFL teams, including the New England Patriots, as well as the Boston Red Sox and several other Major League Baseball clubs. Katz also directs the first worldwide gender violence prevention program in the history of the U.S. Marine Corps. His award-winning educational video Tough Guise, his appearances in the films Wrestling With Manhood and Spin the Bottle, and his nationwide lectures have brought his insights on masculinity and gender violence to millions of college and high school students. Katz’s influential book, “The Macho Paradox: Why Some Men Hurt Women and How All Men Can Help,” was published by Sourcebooks in 2006. Since 1990, he has lectured at over 950 colleges, high schools, middle schools, conferences and military installations in 44 states. Katz holds degrees from U. Massachusetts-Amherst and Harvard University, and is currently a doctoral student in cultural studies and education at UCLA.

Michael Kimmel, PhD is among the world's leading researchers on men and masculinity. Professor of Sociology at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, he is the author or editor of over 20 books, including Manhood in America, The Gendered Society, and most recently, the best-seller Guyland. He is the founding editor of the scholarly journal, Men and Masculinities. He was the first man to deliver the International Women's Day address to the Parliament of Europe, and lectures and consults with corporations, governments, NGOs and universities on engaging men in implementing gender equality policies.

Paul Kivel, social justice educator, activist and writer, has been an innovative leader in violence prevention for 40 years. He is an accomplished trainer and speaker on men’s issues, racism and diversity, challenges of youth, teen dating and family violence, raising boys to manhood, and the impacts of class and power on daily life. His work gives people the understanding to become involved in social justice work, and the tools to become more effective allies in community struggles to end oppression and injustice and to transform organizations and institutions. Kivel is the author of numerous books and curricula including Uprooting Racism: How White People Can Work for Racial Justice, which won the 1996 Gustavus Myers Award for best book on human rights, Men’s Work, Making the Peace, Helping Teens Stop Violence, Boys Will Be Men, I Can Make My World A Safer Place, and most recently, You Call This a Democracy?: Who Benefits, Who Pays, and Who Really Decides.

Mary P. Koss, PhD is a Regents’ Professor in the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health at the University of Arizona. She has worked in the field of violence against women for more than 30 years. She served on the National Academy of Sciences Panel on Violence Against Women, is the sexual violence coordinator of VAWnet.org, the national online resource on research on violence against women funded by the US Centers for Disease Contol and Prevention, and currently sits on the Coordinating Committee of the Sexual Violence Research Initiative based in Johannesburg, South Africa.  She is co-editing a two-book series for the American Psychological Association Presidential Initiative on Violence Against Women and Children, including maltreatment, sexual and physical violence, that will appear in 2009. In recognition of her contributions, the American Psychological Association honored Dr. Koss with its 2000 Award for Distinguished Contributions to Research in Public Policy and with the 2003 Committee on Women in Psychology Leadership Award. In 2010, Dr. Koss was the 8th recipient of the Visionary Award from End Violence Against Women International.

Frederick Marx is an Academy- and Emmy-nominated filmmaker who has worked for 30 years in the film and television industry; he is particularly known for Hoop Dreams. His recent works - the feature film The Unspoken, starring Harry Lennix and Sergei Shnirev, the documentary mini-series Boys to Men? and the sequel New American Heros – all explore adolescent boys' journey towards mature masculinity. Marx brings a passion for multiculturalism and an urgent empathy for the concerns of the disadvantaged to each subject he addresses. An independent thinker in the increasingly commercialized world of “independent cinema,” he continues to provide a voice of artistic and social integrity. Marx was Chicago Tribune Artist of the Year for 1994, a 1995 Guggenheim Fellow, and a recipient of a Robert F. Kennedy Special Achievement Award. His website can be found at warriorproductions.tv.

Joseph Mouzon is Chief of Staff of the Tides Foundation. He was previously the Principal of JAM Consulting, a firm that works with foundations, nonprofits and donors to optimize philanthropy. Prior to this, as Executive Director of Nonprofit Services for Network for Good powered by Groundspring, he was responsible for overall leadership of the West coast division. He directed all sales, service and business development, operations, strategic planning, and financial management activities. Joseph has extensive leadership, management, marketing and nonprofit sector experience, as well as significant depth of knowledge in technology. Before joining Network for Good, he served as marketing leader for the San Francisco YMCA and was Co-Founder and CEO of the Rhythm of Life Organization (ROLO), which created BAYCAT, a San Francisco-based technology training center. Joseph was also a technology pundit for Tech TV, a guest lecturer at Stanford Business School, a frequent speaker at technology/entertainment-focused conferences, and a producer of Herbie Hancock performances at Technology Entertainment & Design events. His advisory board experience includes San Francisco Unified School District, Craigslist Foundation, Jewish Vocational Services, Imhotech, BAYCAT, MOBE, Acapulco Black Film Festival, and the Chicago International Film Festival.

William N. Ryerson is Founder and President of Population Media Center (PMC), an organization that strives to improve the health and well-being of people around the world through entertainment-education strategies.  He also serves as President of The Population Institute in Washington, D.C., which works in partnership with Population Media Center.  In developing countries, PMC creates long-running serialized dramas on radio and television, in which characters evolve into role models for the audience resulting in positive behavior change.  The emphasis of the organization's work is to educate people about benefits of small families, encourage the use of effective family planning methods, elevate women's status, prevent exploitation of children, and promote avoidance of HIV infection.  Research studies have found this work to be highly effective.  Mr. Ryerson has a 40-year history of work in the field of reproductive health. Ryerson received a B.A. in Biology from Amherst College (Magna Cum Laude) and an M.Phil. in Biology from Yale University (with specialization in Ecology and Evolution). He served as Director of the Population Institute's Youth and Student Division, Development Director of Planned Parenthood Southeastern Pennsylvania, Associate Director of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England and Executive Vice President of Population Communications International before founding PMC in 1998.

Jason M. Schultz, JD is Assistant Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Samuelson Law, Technology & Public Policy Clinic at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law. Before that, he was a Senior Staff Attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, one of the leading digital rights groups in the world. Prior to attending law school at Berkeley, Jason worked as a consultant for Loden Associates, a diversity change management group, and Stir-Fry Productions, the makers of the award-winning documentary, The Color of Fear. He has degrees in Public Policy and Women's Studies from Duke University, where co-founded the pro-feminist activist group Men Acting for Change and taught an all-male course on Men and Gender Issues through the Women's Studies department.

Aqeela Sherrills is best known for creating the 1992 “peace agreement” between longtime Los Angeles gang rivals, the Bloods and the Crips.  Sherrills’ inspiration came from the loss of 13 friends to gang violence. This encouraged him to lay the groundwork for peace in his neighborhood. Within 10 years he had co-founded the Amer-I-Can Program, Inc., a multi-million dollar life management skills non-profit with former football legend Jim Brown, and established the Community Self Determination Institute, an agency dedicated to creating a sustainable model for what peace looks like in urban war zones. Sherrills’ current focus is on what he terms the “Reverence Movement,” a peace process that allows people to see the sacredness in one another. He has advised government officials in Belfast and Serbia on the process of establishing non-violent communities, addressed the Hague and the U.S. Congress on the importance of peace, reverence, and non-violence, and brokered peace agreements between gangs in cities across the U.S. Sherrills believes the only true path to reconciliation begins from within.  It’s a message he believes must be made accessible to people in communities around the world. He has received awards including the Denise Aubuchon Humanitarian Award from Death Penalty Focus, and sits on the boards of several social justice organizations including YES!

Chad Keoni Sniffen, MPH has been the Prevention Services Coordinator for the California Coalition Against Sexual Assault (CALCASA) since September 2006. He provides training and technical assistance on prevention-related topics to California's rape crisis centers and rape prevention programs. He also works on: PreventConnect, CALCASA’s national project to foster an online community of prevention practice; the MyStrength Campaign, CALCASA’s statewide prevention effort focused on high-school boys; and other CALCASA projects. Chad has broad experience in the movement to end sexual assault and relationship violence -- he has worked as a crisis advocate, shelter advocate, campus- and community-based prevention educator, women’s self-defense instructor, board member, and volunteer for sexual assault and domestic violence agencies in California and Arizona. His research background includes three years with the University of Arizona RESTORE Program.