About Roy Prosterman
Roy Prosterman is Founder and Chairman Emeritus of Landesa (formerly the Rural Development Institute), a non-governmental organization designed specifically for partnering with governments to extend land rights to the world’s poorest people. He is also Professor Emeritus at the University of Washington law school in Seattle, where he joined the faculty in 1965.
Since 1967, Prosterman has provided advice and conducted research on land tenure issues in more than 40 countries in Asia, the former Soviet Union, Europe, the Middle East and Latin America. He has received numerous awards and distinctions including the Gleitsman International Activist Award, the Schwab Foundation’s Outstanding Global Social Entrepreneur award, the World Affairs Council World Citizen Award, and the inaugural Henry R. Kravis Prize in Leadership. Prosterman is a frequent guest speaker and presenter at world forums on poverty and economic security. He has published several books, including Land Reform and Democratic Development (with Jeffrey Riedinger) and One Billion Rising (authored and edited with Tim Hanstad and Robert Mitchell), and has authored numerous articles. He continues to be actively engaged in Landesa’s research and advisory work.
He is a graduate of the University of Chicago (B.A., 1954) and Harvard Law School (J.D., 1958). Before beginning his work on global development, he practiced as an associate at the New York firm of Sullivan & Cromwell for six years.
