Prof. Sonnenberg’s research and teaching focuses on human rights, conflict resolution, and international development. He is currently on sabbatical from Seoul National University in Korea, where he is an Associate Professor of Law.

He is an expert on pedagogies and research methods that build mutually enriching bridges between critical academic thought and real-world practical experience. His recent scholarship and engagements with policy makers have focused on the development of a human rights-based governance approach to Artificial Intelligence (AI) and other new and emerging technologies, efforts to combat and adapt to the impacts of climate change, and the memorialization of historical atrocities on the Korean peninsula and elsewhere.

Stephan has a BA from Brown University, a Masters in Law & Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University, and a JD from Harvard Law School. He also attained a one-year degree from SciencesPo in Paris (France).  He has almost two decades of teaching experience at Harvard and Stanford Law Schools, Seoul National University, the University of Vienna School of Law, and Bhutan’s first and only Law School, for which he helped develop the curriculum and proudly served as an Associate Dean and member of its inaugural faculty when it opened in 2017. He is very pleased to be spending the 2024 calendar year at Wesleyan University and the University Network for Human Rights.