Tirza Leibowitz is legal advisor for the Disability Rights Initiative at the Open Society Foundations.
Prior to working for the Foundations, Leibowitz was legal advisor at Bizchut–The Israel Human Rights Center for People with Disabilities, where she helped shape a human rights discourse in the area of disability. She litigated for the right of persons with intellectual disabilities to receive community-based services rather than be institutionalized. She also advanced policy and legislation, such as inclusive education, and supported employment in the open labor market for persons with a high level of support needs.
She subsequently directed the advocacy team at Survivor Corps (formerly Landmine Survivors Network), linking victim assistance in the Mine Ban and other international humanitarian treaties with advocacy for the rights of persons with disabilities.
Leibowitz participated in the negotiations at the United Nations on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and contributed to the drafting of the articles on access to justice and the right to live in the community. Leibowitz holds an LLB from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.