Susan Waltz

Emeritus faculty

Susan E. Waltz

Professor Emerita of Public Policy

Waltz specializes in human rights and international affairs, with a focus on arms transfer policy and regional expertise on North Africa. She also maintains the website Human Rights Advocacy and the History of International Human Rights Standards, hosted by U-M. For some 15 years she was involved in international efforts to promote an international Arms Trade Treaty and has more recently focused on U.S. firearms export regulations.

News

Ford School celebrates University of Michigan legends

Aug 21, 2024

This fall, the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy is celebrating the careers of core faculty members: Paul N. Courant, Alan V. Deardorff, Edie Goldenberg, Barry Rabe, Carl Simon, Susan Waltz, and Janet Weiss.At a special event in mid-September,...

Portraits of eight distinguished professionals smiling, likely linked to an academic or corporate context, displayed in two rows of four.a

Susan Waltz published in Washington Post on a proposal to loosen restrictions on exporting semiautomatic weapons

Jun 12, 2018

Susan Waltz published an essay in the Washington Post on Monday, June 4, in which she explains the implications of a rule change proposed by the Trump administration. The change would loosen the export requirements on semiautomatic weapons, such as...

State & Hill

Catch up on Ford School faculty news in the spring 2017 edition of State & Hill magazine

May 23, 2017

Recent publications by ROBERT AXELROD include "Challenges in researching terrorism from the field" with SCOTT ATRAN (Science); "How historical analogies in newspapers of five countries make sense of major events: 9/11, Mumbai, and Tahrir Square"...

Waltz contributes chapter to Oxford University Press book on MENA transitional justice

Feb 1, 2017

Transitional Justice in the Middle East and North Africa, a new Oxford University Press book edited by Chandra Lekha Sriram (University of London), focuses on transitional justice in MENA countries in the wake of the Arab Spring. The book features a...

State & Hill

Ford School faculty news from the fall 2016 edition of State & Hill

Dec 30, 2016

Bob Axelrod's latest paper, published in Psychological Science, explores increasing attention to causality in western society. John Ayanian is serving on a National Academies committee focused on accounting for socioeconomic status in Medicare...

State & Hill

Engaged learning in Ford School classrooms--beyond the big-ticket experiences

Dec 23, 2016

The Ford School has a long history of emphasizing engaged learning. Many of the big-ticket experiences, like the Integrated Policy Exercise (IPE), Applied Policy Seminar (APS) now called Strategic Public Policy Consulting (SPPC), International...

Ford School launches its strategic plan for diversity, equity, and inclusion

Oct 5, 2016

The Ford School has publicly released its five-year strategic plan for diversity, equity, and inclusion, developed as part of a broad University of Michigan commitment launched by President Schlissel in September 2015.The plan includes assessment,...

Waltz and Abouzahr pen Atlantic Council piece on extending U.S. sanctions in Syria

Sep 1, 2016

Susan Waltz and Hossam Abouzahr (MPP ’10) have collaborated on an op-ed, published earlier today in the Atlantic Council’s SyriaSource blog, on “Sanctions as a viable action in a complicated environment.”The House of Representatives, they explain,...

State & Hill

Discourse, Ford School faculty in the news roundup from fall 2015 State & Hill magazine

Dec 4, 2015

“The focus and moral certainty that have fueled the Black Lives Matter movement have opened a rare window of opportunity for real and lasting change.” David Thacher, advocating for a reformed version of Broken Windows policing in U.S. cities,...

Susan Waltz reviews the history of efforts to internationalize Amnesty International

Mar 2, 2015

In a March 2 story for openDemocracy, Susan Waltz writes about “Moving Closer to the Ground,” Amnesty International’s ambitious, multi-year initiative to “disperse many of the functions of its London-based International Secretariat to hubs around...

Michigan Daily covers “The refugee crisis: Who makes it to safety?”

Jan 13, 2015

“Award-winning journalist discusses Afghan refugees,” a January 12 article by Michigan Daily writer Joel Goldstein, highlights the policy talk with Luke Mogelson, New York Times Magazine author of “The Dream Boat.” Mogelson’s award-winning article...

State & Hill

What good is history, anyway?

Dec 18, 2014

With public service in our DNA, what we’d really like to do is to peer into the future, to see and shape what’s coming around the bend. So we asked ourselves, ‘Can a deeper understanding of the past help to shape and inform the future?’ The myth...

Waltz argues Universal Declaration of Human Rights a global, cooperative effort; not just a western idea

Apr 10, 2014

On April 9th, Professor of Public Policy Susan E. Waltz, a scholar and long-time leader in the field of human rights, describes "How Human Rights Went Global" in openSecurity. Waltz says the Universal Declaration of Human Rights isn't a document of...

Waltz argues Universal Declaration of Human Rights a global, cooperative effort; not just a western idea image

Arms Trade Treaty an important milestone, says Susan Waltz

Aug 1, 2013

The Arms Trade Treaty, which would staunch the worldwide flow of military-grade weapons, passed easily at the UN General Assembly in April, by a vote of 154-3 with 23 abstentions. Opened for ratification on June 3, the treaty will go into effect...

Susan Waltz reflects on United Nations General Assembly international Arms Trade Treaty

May 8, 2013

This April, the United Nations General Assembly finalized the text of an international Arms Trade Treaty designed to staunch the flow of weapons to countries where they're likely to fuel human rights abuses. Ford School Professor Susan Waltz, who...

State & Hill

Alumna combats violence against women with GenderHopes

Apr 22, 2013

Knowledge is power for combatting violence against women "So far, there aren't reliable statistics on domestic violence in Monaco," says Vibeke Brask Thomsen (MPP/MA '06), founder and director of GenderHopes. "It doesn't mean they don't exist, we...

State & Hill

Something worth fighting for: The future of an arms trade treaty

Dec 18, 2012

In July 2012, an eleventh hour phone call with instructions from the White House abruptly stalled passage of an all-but-complete 193-nation Arms Trade Treaty at the United Nations. Susan Waltz, professor of public policy, believes that was a...

Ford School faculty earn top University of Michigan awards

Oct 19, 2011

In August 2011, Bob Axelrod was recognized with one of the University of Michigan's most prestigious honors, the Regents' Award for Distinguished Public Service. The award honors "extraordinary distinction in public service by members of the...

Susan Waltz wrote op-ed for Truthout, "Cairo and Our Relationships"

May 20, 2009

In advance of President Obama's planned visit to Cairo, Susan Waltz encourages the president to affirm the United States' commitment to human rights and renounce the use of torture in prisoner interrogations. Waltz taught U.S. foreign policy at...

Susan Waltz wrote op-ed for Truthout, "Cairo and Our Relationships" image

Harry A. and Margaret D. Towsley Foundation Lecture Series, Policy Talks @ the Ford School

Khmer Rouge Trials: Serving to End or Compound Cambodia's Culture of Impunity?

Apr 21, 2014, 4:00-5:30 pm EDT

Weill Hall

About the event In a conversation moderated by Susan Waltz, Margo Picken and John Ciorciari will discuss the positive and negative effects of the UN-backed Khmer Rouge trials that began several years ago in "extraordinary chambers" of the courts of Cambodia. Will they bring "closure" to the country's dark past?

Rediscovering the Caribbean: An Overview of economic, social and public health issues in the region

Sep 14, 2010, 4:00-5:30 pm EDT

Weill Hall

Panelists: Alan Deardorff, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and Department of Economics, University of Michigan Susan M. Collins, Joan and Sanford Weill Dean of Public Policy, University of Michigan Mark B. Padilla, School of Public Health, University of Michigan Susan Waltz, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan Co-sponsored with the International Policy Student Association and the International Policy Center.

Susan Waltz

Susan E. Waltz

Ford School celebrates University of Michigan legends

Susan Waltz published in Washington Post on a proposal to loosen restrictions on exporting semiautomatic weapons

Catch up on Ford School faculty news in the spring 2017 edition of State & Hill magazine

Waltz contributes chapter to Oxford University Press book on MENA transitional justice

Ford School faculty news from the fall 2016 edition of State & Hill

Engaged learning in Ford School classrooms--beyond the big-ticket experiences

Ford School launches its strategic plan for diversity, equity, and inclusion

Waltz and Abouzahr pen Atlantic Council piece on extending U.S. sanctions in Syria

Discourse, Ford School faculty in the news roundup from fall 2015 State & Hill magazine

Susan Waltz reviews the history of efforts to internationalize Amnesty International

Michigan Daily covers “The refugee crisis: Who makes it to safety?”

What good is history, anyway?

Waltz argues Universal Declaration of Human Rights a global, cooperative effort; not just a western idea

Arms Trade Treaty an important milestone, says Susan Waltz

Susan Waltz reflects on United Nations General Assembly international Arms Trade Treaty

Alumna combats violence against women with GenderHopes

Something worth fighting for: The future of an arms trade treaty

Ford School faculty earn top University of Michigan awards

Susan Waltz wrote op-ed for Truthout, "Cairo and Our Relationships"

Khmer Rouge Trials: Serving to End or Compound Cambodia's Culture of Impunity?

Rediscovering the Caribbean: An Overview of economic, social and public health issues in the region

The Refugee Crisis: Who makes it to safety? panel

Margo Picken: Are the Khmer Rouge Trials serving to end or compound Cambodia's culture of impunity?

Susan Waltz: New website offers guide to human rights history

Susan Waltz: Can the UN stem flow of small arms?