Fellows Academic Program

Post–Doctorate Fellowship 2025-26

Shmulik Baron
	Shmuel Baron received his SJD from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, where he was a Vanier Canada Graduate Scholar, and holds an LLB in law and philosophy from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His research spans legal theory and moral, political, and legal philosophy. His dissertation examines the moral significance of consent in interpersonal relations, the ability to create permissions through consent, and its role as a defense in criminal and tort law. His work bridges legal philosophy and moral theory, engaging with questions of normative powers, rights-based morality, and the evidential role of consent. In addition to his dissertation, he has published and presented on topics including penal theory and the gap between sentencing ideals and prison realities.

Shmulik Baron

Shmuel Baron received his SJD from the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, where he was a Vanier Canada Graduate Scholar, and holds an LLB in law and philosophy from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His research spans legal theory and moral, political, and legal philosophy. His dissertation examines the moral significance of consent in interpersonal relations, the ability to create permissions through consent, and its role as a defense in criminal and tort law. His work bridges legal philosophy and moral theory, engaging with questions of normative powers, rights-based morality, and the evidential role of consent. In addition to his dissertation, he has published and presented on topics including penal theory and the gap between sentencing ideals and prison realities.

Yossi Edry
	Yossi Edry is a historian with research interests in American history, the history of capitalism, and social history, focusing on their intersections. He earned his B.A. and M.A. as well as his Ph.D. at Tel Aviv University. His dissertation examined the changing public image of the Black athlete in the United States between 1968 and 1992 through the lens of professional basketball and the NBA. His work offers new perspectives on the cultural and economic forces shaping inequality and public life. As a postdoctoral fellow at the Edmond J. Safra Institute, he is expanding this research to explore the intersection of race, democracy, and urban culture in 1980s Los Angeles.

Yossi Edry

Yossi Edry is a historian with research interests in American history, the history of capitalism, and social history, focusing on their intersections. He earned his B.A. and M.A. as well as his Ph.D. at Tel Aviv University. His dissertation examined the changing public image of the Black athlete in the United States between 1968 and 1992 through the lens of professional basketball and the NBA. His work offers new perspectives on the cultural and economic forces shaping inequality and public life. As a postdoctoral fellow at the Edmond J. Safra Institute, he is expanding this research to explore the intersection of race, democracy, and urban culture in 1980s Los Angeles.

Dana Natan-Krup
	Dana is interested in the core mechanisms that play a role in the stability of democratic governance in the context of the relationship between citizens and the state. Thus, she focuses on research about public administration and policy, public accountability, auditing, bureaucracy, administrative burden, trust, corruption, and democracy. One of her goals is to explore the impact of accountability mechanisms on public trust in government by integrating explanations related to civic norms, conceptions of democracy, and the structural conditions under which institutions function. Dana publishes her articles in top-ranked journals such as the American Review of Public Administration, Public Management Review, Public Administration, and Political Studies. Dana was a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Paul Baerwald School of Social Work and Social Welfare, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and a Visiting Researcher at the Department of Politics and Public Administration, University of Konstanz, Germany. Dana received her Ph.D. and MPA (Research Track) from the Department of Public Administration & Policy, University of Haifa. She holds Bachelors in Economics and Psychology from the Open University. * Dana is the winner of the Harry Bloomfield Postdoctoral Scholarship at the Tel Aviv University.

Dana Natan-Krup

Dana is interested in the core mechanisms that play a role in the stability of democratic governance in the context of the relationship between citizens and the state. Thus, she focuses on research about public administration and policy, public accountability, auditing, bureaucracy, administrative burden, trust, corruption, and democracy. One of her goals is to explore the impact of accountability mechanisms on public trust in government by integrating explanations related to civic norms, conceptions of democracy, and the structural conditions under which institutions function.

Dana publishes her articles in top-ranked journals such as the American Review of Public Administration, Public Management Review, Public Administration, and Political Studies.

Dana was a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Paul Baerwald School of Social Work and Social Welfare, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and a Visiting Researcher at the Department of Politics and Public Administration, University of Konstanz, Germany. Dana received her Ph.D. and MPA (Research Track) from the Department of Public Administration & Policy, University of Haifa. She holds Bachelors in Economics and Psychology from the Open University.

* Dana is the winner of the Harry Bloomfield Postdoctoral Scholarship at the Tel Aviv University.

Max Plithides
	Max Plithides holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and a B.A. in Economics from Trinity University. He has previously been an IGCC predoctoral fellow at the University of California San Diego. His current book project advances Power Production Theory (PPT), a new framework that draws on economic theories of production and specialization to explain how states convert civilian resources into military power. PPT holds that the relative composition of civilian economies substantially conditions the types of militaries that states produce, and that those militaries, in turn, generate unique levels of situational combat power. While at the Safra Center, Max will examine how PPT functions in small states (e.g., Israel), where key transaction costs often shift from private to public sector institutions. * Max is the winner (sponsor: Azar Gat) of the Harry Bloomfield Postdoctoral Scholarship at Tel Aviv University.

Max Plithides

Max Plithides holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and a B.A. in Economics from Trinity University. He has previously been an IGCC predoctoral fellow at the University of California San Diego.

His current book project advances Power Production Theory (PPT), a new framework that draws on economic theories of production and specialization to explain how states convert civilian resources into military power. PPT holds that the relative composition of civilian economies substantially conditions the types of militaries that states produce, and that those militaries, in turn, generate unique levels of situational combat power. While at the Safra Center, Max will examine how PPT functions in small states (e.g., Israel), where key transaction costs often shift from private to public sector institutions.

* Max is the winner (sponsor: Azar Gat) of the Harry Bloomfield Postdoctoral Scholarship at Tel Aviv University.

Roy Schulman
	My research concerns moral objectivity. Specifically, I research when and why people perceive morality as objective and what it entails. I am also interested in other aspects of morality, such as the structure of moral discussions, moral advice-taking and moral perception. I finished my PhD in moral psychology under the supervision of Prof. Tal Eyal (BGU) and Prof Nira Liberman (TAU), and in October 2025 I will begin a postdoc position at the Safra Center for Ethics (TAU). Linktree: https://linktr.ee/Roy_Schulman

Roy Schulman

My research concerns moral objectivity. Specifically, I research when and why people perceive morality as objective and what it entails. I am also interested in other aspects of morality, such as the structure of moral discussions, moral advice-taking and moral perception. I finished my PhD in moral psychology under the supervision of Prof. Tal Eyal (BGU) and Prof Nira Liberman (TAU), and in October 2025 I will begin a postdoc position at the Safra Center for Ethics (TAU).

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/Roy_Schulman

Elazar Weiss
	Elazar Weiss completed his J.S.D. at Yale Law School, where he also earned his LL.M. degree in 2020. Elazar’s research focuses on the intersection between law, culture and language. His J.S.D dissertation examines the metaphors and paradigms underlying US abortion jurisprudence and the “culture wars.” Through interpretive readings of court cases, academic literature, and cultural texts (from thinks tanks to twitter), Elazar proposes the right to Destiny as an alternative to the Court’s Privacy argument in Roe v. Wade. He is currently working on a similar project regarding the Burden metaphor shaping Israel’s legal and social discourses regarding the mandatory draft. Elazar also works on the notions of Constitutional Conventions and Federalism, as a means for creating a shared political imagination in divided societies. Before coming to Yale, Elazar studied in the The Adi Lautman Interdisciplinary Program for Outstanding Students at Tel-Aviv University, where he completed In 2016 a law degree (L.L.B) and B.A. in Philosophy and Economics. Elazar clerked on the Supreme Court of Israel and has taught courses in Jurisprudence, Constitutional law, and Contracts. Elazar also served as the editor-in-chief of the Tel-Aviv University Law Journal (“Iyunei Mishpat”) and as Tutor in Law at The Program for the Integration and Advancement of Arab-Palestinian Students (Tel-Aviv University Law School). In 2020 – and as part of his work as a Yale Law School Schell center Human Rights Fellow – Elazar embarked on a Social-Political journey through the Holy Land and its discourses. A visual documentation of this journey is on exhibit at the Slifka Center for Jewish Life at Yale.

Elazar Weiss

Elazar Weiss completed his J.S.D. at Yale Law School, where he also earned his LL.M. degree in 2020. Elazar’s research focuses on the intersection between law, culture and language. His J.S.D dissertation examines the metaphors and paradigms underlying US abortion jurisprudence and the “culture wars.” Through interpretive readings of court cases, academic literature, and cultural texts (from thinks tanks to twitter), Elazar proposes the right to Destiny as an alternative to the Court’s Privacy argument in Roe v. Wade. He is currently working on a similar project regarding the Burden metaphor shaping Israel’s legal and social discourses regarding the mandatory draft. Elazar also works on the notions of Constitutional Conventions and Federalism, as a means for creating a shared political imagination in divided societies.

Before coming to Yale, Elazar studied in the The Adi Lautman Interdisciplinary Program for Outstanding Students at Tel-Aviv University, where he completed In 2016 a law degree (L.L.B) and B.A. in Philosophy and Economics. Elazar clerked on the Supreme Court of Israel and has taught courses in Jurisprudence, Constitutional law, and Contracts. Elazar also served as the editor-in-chief of the Tel-Aviv University Law Journal (“Iyunei Mishpat”) and as Tutor in Law at The Program for the Integration and Advancement of Arab-Palestinian Students (Tel-Aviv University Law School). In 2020 – and as part of his work as a Yale Law School Schell center Human Rights Fellow – Elazar embarked on a Social-Political journey through the Holy Land and its discourses. A visual documentation of this journey is on exhibit at the Slifka Center for Jewish Life at Yale.

Xi Zhang
	Xi Zhang obtained his LLB and BSc in Economics from the Peking University in 2014 and his Master of Laws from the New York University School of Law in 2018. Xi has recently defended his doctoral dissertation, which explores the topic of associative obligation from the perspective of practical reasoning. Xi specializes in legal theory, and works in the intersection of legal, moral, and political philosophy. In particular, Xi’s academic interests focus on jurisprudential methodology, political authority and obligation, philosophy of practical reason, and relational ethics. Xi has presented his academic works in the US, Canada, the UK, Portugal, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Turkey, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China. Xi’s paper, “The Positional Nature of Valuing”, has been published in Journal of Value Inquiry, an earlier version of which won the Australasian Society of Legal Philosophy Essay Competition in 2021. Prior to joining Safra, Xi was a Visiting PhD Student at the Surrey Centre for Law & Philosophy of University of Surrey School of Law, and an International Visiting Research Trainee at the Osgoode Hall Law School of York University. At Safra, Xi’s proposed research is concerned with how the dynamics of state-subject relations evolve in the transnational realm. In particular, it will explore interactions between political diasporas and fellow members remaining in their home countries against the backdrop of domestic authoritarian regimes. Among other things, it will address problems of the transnational political obligation of political diasporas and the state’s responsibilities and liabilities to political diasporas. Xi’s fellowship at Safra is also supported by the Harry Bloomfield International Scholarship as a matching scholarship for postdoctoral fellows at the Tel Aviv University.

Xi Zhang

Xi Zhang obtained his LLB and BSc in Economics from the Peking University in 2014 and his Master of Laws from the New York University School of Law in 2018. Xi has recently defended his doctoral dissertation, which explores the topic of associative obligation from the perspective of practical reasoning. Xi specializes in legal theory, and works in the intersection of legal, moral, and political philosophy. In particular, Xi’s academic interests focus on jurisprudential methodology, political authority and obligation, philosophy of practical reason, and relational ethics.

Xi has presented his academic works in the US, Canada, the UK, Portugal, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Turkey, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China. Xi’s paper, “The Positional Nature of Valuing”, has been published in Journal of Value Inquiry, an earlier version of which won the Australasian Society of Legal Philosophy Essay Competition in 2021. Prior to joining Safra, Xi was a Visiting PhD Student at the Surrey Centre for Law & Philosophy of University of Surrey School of Law, and an International Visiting Research Trainee at the Osgoode Hall Law School of York University.

At Safra, Xi’s proposed research is concerned with how the dynamics of state-subject relations evolve in the transnational realm. In particular, it will explore interactions between political diasporas and fellow members remaining in their home countries against the backdrop of domestic authoritarian regimes. Among other things, it will address problems of the transnational political obligation of political diasporas and the state’s responsibilities and liabilities to political diasporas. Xi’s fellowship at Safra is also supported by the Harry Bloomfield International Scholarship as a matching scholarship for postdoctoral fellows at the Tel Aviv University.

Harvard Exchange Program

Lukas Meier
	Lukas J. Meier is a Harvard-TAU Exchange Fellow, specialising in artificial intelligence, medical ethics, and neurophilosophy. He is an Associate at the Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University. Previously, he was a Junior Research Fellow at the University of Cambridge and a fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government. Lukas studied philosophy at the University of Oxford and political science at the University of Göttingen. As part of a team developing an algorithm for ethical decision-making in the clinic, he also spent a year at the Technical University of Munich. His doctoral thesis, completed at the Universities of St Andrews and Heidelberg, linked the topic of brain death to the debate on personal identity. Lukas teaches in ethics, metaphysics, philosophy of mind, political philosophy, and medical ethics.

Lukas Meier

Lukas J. Meier is a Harvard-TAU Exchange Fellow, specialising in artificial intelligence, medical ethics, and neurophilosophy. He is an Associate at the Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University. Previously, he was a Junior Research Fellow at the University of Cambridge and a fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government.

Lukas studied philosophy at the University of Oxford and political science at the University of Göttingen.

As part of a team developing an algorithm for ethical decision-making in the clinic, he also spent a year at the Technical University of Munich. His doctoral thesis, completed at the Universities of St Andrews and Heidelberg, linked the topic of brain death to the debate on personal identity. Lukas teaches in ethics, metaphysics, philosophy of mind, political philosophy, and medical ethics.

Doctorate Fellowship 2025-26

Yoav Goldstein
	Yoav Goldstein is a PhD candidate at the Eitan Berglas School of Economics, Tel Aviv University. His research covers various topics within empirical labor economics, with a particular focus on education. He investigates both how young adults make educational decisions and the consequences of these choices. In his dissertation, Yoav studies how academic specialization within higher education shapes students' political attitudes and behaviors. His findings show that academic fields of study significantly influence students' ideology, highlighting that humanities and social science fields (excluding economics) tend to make students more liberal and politically active. Furthermore, by examining how pre-existing attitudes influence students’ field choices, his results show that academic specialization contributes to political fragmentation by increasing both political polarization and gender-based political gaps. Yoav's additional research explores psychological barriers affecting degree choices, the economic returns to pursuing selective academic programs, and the impact of collegiate networks on career advancement. Yoav holds a BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, and an MA in Economics, both from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Yoav Goldstein

Yoav Goldstein is a PhD candidate at the Eitan Berglas School of Economics, Tel Aviv University. His research covers various topics within empirical labor economics, with a particular focus on education. He investigates both how young adults make educational decisions and the consequences of these choices. In his dissertation, Yoav studies how academic specialization within higher education shapes students' political attitudes and behaviors. His findings show that academic fields of study significantly influence students' ideology, highlighting that humanities and social science fields (excluding economics) tend to make students more liberal and politically active. Furthermore, by examining how pre-existing attitudes influence students’ field choices, his results show that academic specialization contributes to political fragmentation by increasing both political polarization and gender-based political gaps.

Yoav's additional research explores psychological barriers affecting degree choices, the economic returns to pursuing selective academic programs, and the impact of collegiate networks on career advancement.

Yoav holds a BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, and an MA in Economics, both from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Yuval Hirshorn
	Yuval Hirshorn is a Ph.D. candidate at the School of Political Science at Tel Aviv University (TAU). In his dissertation project, he studies how people’s ongoing relationships with banks affect their political participation and how adverse banking events shape their support for governments. Through a multi-method empirical analysis, he seeks to demonstrate how democratic qualities are affected by both long-term patterns and short-term changes in the non-sensational and mundane economic management of citizens’ lives. Yuval is involved in several research collaborations at the intersection of democracy, institutions, and individuals’ behavior. Inter alia, he has recently co-studied the effectiveness of international constitutional advisors as democracy promoters, the impact of macroeconomic policy rules on public opinion, and blame shifting under the EU’s supranational governance. Yuval holds a B.A. and an M.A. in political science from Tel Aviv University, and he is a Junior Goldman Fellow at the Hartog School in Tel Aviv University. He has also taught several courses at TAU’s School of Political Science, Social Engagement Unit, and University for Youth.

Yuval Hirshorn

Yuval Hirshorn is a Ph.D. candidate at the School of Political Science at Tel Aviv University (TAU). In his dissertation project, he studies how people’s ongoing relationships with banks affect their political participation and how adverse banking events shape their support for governments. Through a multi-method empirical analysis, he seeks to demonstrate how democratic qualities are affected by both long-term patterns and short-term changes in the non-sensational and mundane economic management of citizens’ lives.

Yuval is involved in several research collaborations at the intersection of democracy, institutions, and individuals’ behavior. Inter alia, he has recently co-studied the effectiveness of international constitutional advisors as democracy promoters, the impact of macroeconomic policy rules on public opinion, and blame shifting under the EU’s supranational governance. Yuval holds a B.A. and an M.A. in political science from Tel Aviv University, and he is a Junior Goldman Fellow at the Hartog School in Tel Aviv University. He has also taught several courses at TAU’s School of Political Science, Social Engagement Unit, and University for Youth.

Limor Margolin-Yehudi
	Limor Margolin-Yehidi is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Anthropology at Tel Aviv University, currently conducting fieldwork for her dissertation, The Topography of the Ethical-Political Subject. Her research explores Jewish-Israeli individuals committed to the Palestinian cause and to ending the conflict, examining the tension between autonomous ethical decisions and heteronomous forces, the role of somatic affects, the origins of responsibility as a normative value or as a response to trauma, and the yearning for a sense of home through commitment. She holds LL.B. and LL.M. degrees (both with honors) in Law, and an M.A. in Conflict Management and Resolution (summa cum laude). She is the recipient of two Yitzhak Rabin Prizes for Peace Research (for her M.A. thesis and for her doctoral work), the Reispus Fellowship for Advanced Jewish Studies, the Walter Libach Institute Fellowship for Jewish–Arab Relations, and the Yonatan Shapira Fellowship for Democracy Studies. She has presented her ethnographic findings in the Transformation program on transformations in European anthropology in the 21st century. From 2007 to 2019 she served as a judge in the Tel Aviv Magistrates’ and District Courts, and she currently volunteers with Road to Recovery, transporting Palestinian children to hospitals in Israel.

Limor Margolin-Yehudi

Limor Margolin-Yehidi is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Anthropology at Tel Aviv University, currently conducting fieldwork for her dissertation, The Topography of the Ethical-Political Subject. Her research explores Jewish-Israeli individuals committed to the Palestinian cause and to ending the conflict, examining the tension between autonomous ethical decisions and heteronomous forces, the role of somatic affects, the origins of responsibility as a normative value or as a response to trauma, and the yearning for a sense of home through commitment. She holds LL.B. and LL.M. degrees (both with honors) in Law, and an M.A. in Conflict Management and Resolution (summa cum laude). She is the recipient of two Yitzhak Rabin Prizes for Peace Research (for her M.A. thesis and for her doctoral work), the Reispus Fellowship for Advanced Jewish Studies, the Walter Libach Institute Fellowship for Jewish–Arab Relations, and the Yonatan Shapira Fellowship for Democracy Studies. She has presented her ethnographic findings in the Transformation program on transformations in European anthropology in the 21st century. From 2007 to 2019 she served as a judge in the Tel Aviv Magistrates’ and District Courts, and she currently volunteers with Road to Recovery, transporting Palestinian children to hospitals in Israel.

Remy Manoach
	Remy is a PhD candidate at the Zvi Meitar Center for Advanced Legal Studies at Tel-Aviv University Faculty of Law, under the supervision of Professor Issi Rozen-Zvi. Remy recently submitted his research proposal titled "The Neighborhood as a Legal Concept". The research focuses on municipal law theory and local democracy. The motivation for the project derives from the appreciation that modern urban life is characterized by fragmented social interactions, alienation and loneliness. Local communities thus fail to function as "Schoolhouse for democracy" as De Tocqueville hoped. The research reexamines classic theoretical arguments justifying the establishment of local governments, in light of the human condition in modern mega-cities. The research proposes to establish sub-local legal entities ("legal neighborhoods"), based on elected institutions and equipped with adequate authorities, for the cultivation of democratic participation and social capital. The proposed methodology is interdisciplinary, using concepts and theories from public law, sociology, planning and political science. For around 20 years Remy has been teaching at TAU law faculty a course on land use law.

Remy Manoach

Remy is a PhD candidate at the Zvi Meitar Center for Advanced Legal Studies at Tel-Aviv University Faculty of Law, under the supervision of Professor Issi Rozen-Zvi.

Remy recently submitted his research proposal titled "The Neighborhood as a Legal Concept". The research focuses on municipal law theory and local democracy.

The motivation for the project derives from the appreciation that modern urban life is characterized by fragmented social interactions, alienation and loneliness. Local communities thus fail to function as "Schoolhouse for democracy" as De Tocqueville hoped. The research reexamines classic theoretical arguments justifying the establishment of local governments, in light of the human condition in modern mega-cities. The research proposes to establish sub-local legal entities ("legal neighborhoods"), based on elected institutions and equipped with adequate authorities, for the cultivation of democratic participation and social capital. The proposed methodology is interdisciplinary, using concepts and theories from public law, sociology, planning and political science.

For around 20 years Remy has been teaching at TAU law faculty a course on land use law.