Rosemary Coombe

Rosemary Coombe is a Tier One Canada Research Chair in Law, Communication and Culture and Professor in the Departments of Anthropology and Social Science at York University's Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies.

Education:

• J.S.D./Ph.D. (Doctor of the Science of Law/Minor in Anthropology), Stanford University
• J.S.M. (Master of the Science of Law), Stanford University
• LL.B. (With Great Distinction), University of Western Ontario
• B.A. (Honors) Anthropology/Political Science, University of Western Ontario

Research examines the cultural, political, and social implications of intellectual property law, with current focus on:

• Cultural property, heritage politics, and biocultural rights
• Food sovereignty and agroecology
• Neoliberalism and informational capital
• Human rights in transnational contexts
• Indigenous rights and traditional knowledge protection

Her publications explore how cultural claims are mobilized through international legal frameworks. Recent work investigates heritage technologies in neoliberal governance contexts and the articulation of cultural rights.

Awards include multiple international research chairs and fellowships recognizing her contributions to legal anthropology and cultural studies.

Extensive graduate supervision includes students working on indigenous rights, cultural heritage restitution, migration studies, and intellectual property. Actively directs the Diversity & Human Rights certificate program in partnership with the Human Resources Professional Association.