George Lakey has been a leader in the field of nonviolent social change since the 1960s and has published extensively for both activist and academic readers. He was the founder and executive director of Training for Change, a Philadelphia-based organization internationally known for its leadership in creating and teaching strategies for nonviolent social change. Lakey has worked in the United States with mineworkers, steelworkers, and civil rights leaders, and, internationally, with South African anti-apartheid activists, Cambodian human rights organizers, and many others. He is a recently retired Swarthmore professor who focused on peace and conflict studies. He is a member of Central Philadelphia Monthly Meeting of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting.