Ep.86: Daniel Levin has spent the last twenty years working with governments and development institutions worldwide.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/6mhOXgITnDulrR12kypRCp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHwiPl03RqA
From the article:
Im neuen Buch «Zwanzig Tage» von Daniel Levin geht es um eine Geiselnahme in Syrien – der Autor berichtet über seine geheime Mission.
tachles: Sie leben als Anwalt in den USA und leiten parallel dazu die Liechtenstein Foundation for State Governance. In welchen Bereichen ist die Foundation tätig?
Daniel Levin: Die Foundation wurde als gemeinnützige Stiftung im Jahr 2009 vom Fürsten von Liechtenstein ins Leben gerufen mit dem ursprünglichen Ziel, ein Wissensinstrumentarium an Entwicklungsländer zu vermitteln. Es geht darum, Tools zu entwickeln und weiterzugeben, mit denen die Verantwortlichen der betroffenen Länder dort selbst agieren können. In den letzten Jahren hat sich der Wirkungsbereich der Stiftung auch in Richtung Mediation in Kriegszonen wie Libyen, Syrien oder im Jemen entwickelt.
Kalavinka Viewpoints, October 19, 2022
Daniel has spent the last twenty-five years working with governments and development institutions worldwide, focusing on economic development and political reform through financial literacy, political inclusion, and constitutional initiatives. He is also engaged in track 3 diplomacy and mediation efforts in war zones. He is currently a member of the board of the Liechtenstein Foundation for State Governance and the author of several books including his most recent, Proof of Life.
Daniel Levin spends his days negotiating behind the scenes, resolving Southeast Asian hostage situations, mediating waring nations, and writing books. We asked our Head of ESG & Impact, Jaclyn Seow, to have a discussion with him on the craft of negotiation.
What is life like in hot conflict zones? What happens when a foreigner is kidnapped in the Middle East? How does the war economy work? Check out this conversation with author Daniel Levin. He is a lawyer turned arm conflict negotiator. In 2021, Daniel published a book called “Proof of Life: Twenty Days on the Hunt for a Missing Person in the Middle East.” Exceptionally well-connected in the Middle East through foundation work, Daniel is active in conflict zones and is often asked to help with missing people and hostage negotiation. This intense and suspenseful book is about the search for an American named Paul. Daniel draws on deep historical and personal perspectives in our far-ranging conversation. Join me for this inspiring story; it’s the best twenty-five minutes you’ll spend today.
Daniel Levin is an attorney, political commentator, and author of Nothing but a Circus: Misadventures Among the Powerful and Proof of Life: Twenty Days on the Hunt for a Missing Person in the Middle East.
The email slipped into Daniel Levin’s inbox while he slept. It was just one email among hundreds, but this one was different. It was from Huby Mazerius, an acquaintance of a mentor of Daniel’s who had always been kind and supportive.
Please meet me in Paris. It’s a matter of life and death.
Huby wasn’t a dramatic person, and Daniel was worried—and intrigued.
Read the article at Ami Magazine
Or download the article as a PDF
Published December 15, 2021
Daniel Levin has traveled a wide ranging and fascinating path in his lifetime. Having grown up in several different cultures in the Middle East and Africa, he has devoted his life to working in geopolitical spheres to help governments navigate their way through political reform and economic development.
Ari and Daniel discuss modern power dynamics and their use and misapplication by our own government in our efforts at nation building in the Middle East. By drawing on contacts and relationships he’s fostered worldwide, Daniel has used his experience in the realm of hostage negotiation. He details a gripping series of events in his one man search to find a missing person, lost in the chaos of Syria, in his latest book, “Proof of Life”. The lessons learned over those twenty tense days resonate in many events in our current times.
“In his new book Proof of Life, American author Daniel Levin dives into the Syrian shadows – an underground industry of war where everything is for sale: arms, drugs, even people. In this thriller/memoir he draws on his perceptions and experience as a a lawyer turned armed conflict negotiator who, for the past twenty years, has worked with governments and development institutions worldwide. After a fairly worldly upbringing, he served in the Israeli Special Forces, studied law, taught in Arabic, and now uses his extensive Middle Eastern contacts and cultural understanding for diplomatic and mediation efforts as well.
“In this interview, I showed up for the story of a Syrian hostage negotiation, and stayed for the wide-ranging discussion of the importance of historical context in any conflict resolution and the potential institutional reforms that must also take that into consideration. We talked about the government/ruling situation in Afganistan, Lebanon, and Isreal – and the author’s uncanny sense of smell.”
