Ralph Bunche was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1950 for his mediation in bringing peace to Palestine, as the UN mediator during the Arab-Israeli peace negotiations.
From 1936 to 1938, on a Social Science Research Council fellowship, Ralph Bunche conducted postdoctoral research in anthropology at LSE, (and at Northwestern University and Capetown University), and was the first black American to gain a PhD in political science from an American university.
An active campaigner for civil rights in America, he received the Medal of Freedom, America's highest civilian honour, from President Kennedy in 1963.
Read more about Ralph Bunche on the LSE History Blog.