Rob Gould holds advanced degrees in philosophy and in teaching. He grew up in Portland and became active in peace issues in the Vietnam War era. In 1984 and co-founded the Oregon Peace Institute with Congresswoman Elizabeth Furse.
Through the early 1990s, Rob taught at several campuses around Portland. With Mary Zinkin, he co-founded the Conflict Resolution graduate program at Portland State in 1996 and served as director until 2015. Rob teaches courses with an ethical/values focus, such as Forgiveness & Atonement (CR 419/519) and Evil & Hate (CR 416/516). He is currently at work on a conflict resolution textbook, tentatively titled Navigating Differences and Dilemmas. He is also an avid runner, bicycler, and mountain climber.