BIO –   Adv. Michal Cotler-Wunsh, LL.B, LL.M
Senior Policy & Strategy Advisor / Former Member of Knesset

Michal Cotler-Wunsh is a prominent public speaker, researcher and independent policy and strategy
advisor on intersecting issues of law, human rights, Zionism and antisemitism. Informed by political,
professional and academic experience, Michal explores topics surrounding international law, human rights and the
harm of their weaponization; mutated and mainstreamed rising antisemitism; the threat of disinformation and
conspiracy theories to democracies; Zionism as a millennia-old identity integral to the construction of a progressive
national liberation movement; the relationship between Israel and global Jewry in collaborative nation-building; and
the role of “Olim” as a “live bridge” to build resiliency, address growing internal gaps, and connect Israel to global
communities, cultures and countries. Focused on process, transparency and accountability, Michal identifies and
connects real-world symptoms and manifestations to diagnose and address root causes; offers high-level analysis that
highlights challenges as opportunities; enables and encourages to recognize and remove systemic hurdles; and
empowers collaborative, proactive creation of holistic, sustainable change.
Michal was a Member of Israel’s 23rd Knesset. Drawing on areas of expertise and commitments, she served as Chair
of the Special Committee on Drug and Alcohol Use, Chair of the Subcommittee on Israel-Diaspora Relations, and as
active member of several prestigious committees including the Foreign Affairs and Security committee, Constitution,
Law and Justice committee, and the Children’s Rights, Women’s Status, and Immigration and Integration Committees.
Michal served as the first Knesset Liaison to the Issue of the International Criminal Court (ICC), was co-chair of the
Canada-Israel interparliamentary friendship group, was a member of several interparliamentary friendship and
working groups, and Chair of the Caucus for Ethiopians in Israel. She initiated and led multiple Knesset hearings on
the topic of online antisemitism, engaging social media platforms, civil society organizations and technology experts.
Identifying antisemitism as an example of the proliferation and dangers of disinformation in a digital age; of the blurred
boundaries between online and on the streets; and of the need for global collaboration to meet this global challenge to
ensure the safety of all; Michal co-founded the Interparliamentary Bi-Partisan Task Force to Combat Online
Antisemitism, together with legislative representatives from Canada, Australia, the US and UK. She remains at the
forefront of this and other initiatives, committed to identify, expose and combat the mutation and permeation of
antisemitism that pose an existential threat, to Israel, to the Jewish people, to liberal values and to society at large.
With extensive management experience and academic expertise, Michal has been a frequently interviewed and
headlined public speaker with an ability to engage and relate to diverse audiences, in Israel and abroad. She is a prolific
author published on multiple platforms, utilizing her hybrid identity and bi-lingual competencies to transcend, reach
across and bridge geographic, cultural, religious and linguistic divides. Michal serves as a trustee in The Rabbi Sacks
Legacy and is a member of several not-for-profit boards, focused on governance and strategy. She is a legal advisor
to the Goldin family, dedicated to the return of deceased Israeli soldiers Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul, and Israeli
civilians Avera Mengistu and Hisham a-Sayed, held captive for 8 years in standing violation of international law and
human rights. In this as in other engagements, Michal is committed to underscoring shared responsibility for equal
and consistent application of international law and human rights, critical to the sustainability of the infrastructure
created to uphold, promote and protect foundational principles.
Michal was born in Israel and grew up in Canada. She received her LL.B. from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
and her LL.M. from McGill University in Montreal, Canada. Her PhD research is focused on freedom of speech on
university campuses, tracking the effects of (attempted) regulation of rights. She previously served as a scholarinresidence for the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA); Strategy & Policy advisor to Nefesh B’Nefesh;
Director of International External Relations at the Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) Herzliya; PhD candidate in the
Human Rights under Pressure – Ethics, Law and Politics program at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Freie
Universität of Berlin; and research fellow at the Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT) at IDC Herzliya.
Michal lives in Ra’anana, Israel with her husband and their 4 children.