Ariel Heifetz Knobel is a conflict management practitioner and Northern Ireland expert. She works on various initiatives in the Middle East, including a multinational executive training program in negotiation and leadership, as well as the newly established Jerusalem Belfast Forum.

For 7 years, Ariel has collaborated with Northern Irish peacemakers to share best practices internationally. Her research focuses on militant groups’ shifts away from violence, having conducted fieldwork through Harvard’s Program on Negotiation.

Ariel served as Public Diplomacy Director for 5 states at the Consulate General of Israel to New England, and was a mediator in Boston’s district courts. A former martial arts instructor, Ariel holds a MA in International Negotiation & Conflict Management from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, and a BA in Philosophy & Political Science from Columbia University.

She lives in Tel Aviv with her husband and two children.