Email: Jeffrey.Pugh@umb.edu

Dr. Jeff Pugh is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Providence College, Rhode Island and Executive Director of the Center for Mediation, Peace, and Resolution of Conflict (CEMPROC), an NGO based in Ecuador and the United States. He holds a Ph.D in Political Science from Johns Hopkins University, where his doctoral dissertation on forced migration in Ecuador was awarded the Peace and Justice Studies Association Best Graduate Dissertation of the Year. He has published on conflict and forced migration in Ecuador, and frequently teaches and researches in the country. He has given invited talks at Brown University and at the UN Interagency Framework for Conflict Prevention. He currently serves as President of the Middle Atlantic Council of Latin American Studies (MACLAS).

Email: simo.els@katamail.com

Simonetta Rossi  has over 18 years of experience in the humanitarian and development fields  and is a former UN Peace and Development Adviser for Ecuador. She has carried out research and analysis on Colombian refugees in Ecuador in collaboration with UNHCR and has collaborated  with the National Institute of Advanced Studies in Ecuador. Her research includes such topics as refugees originated by the Colombian conflict and its impact on the region,  conflict between indigenous groups in the country and reintegration of ex-combatants in post-conflict countries.