From its inception is directed by Bernardo Sorj[3] and the Board of Advisors includes Adama Samassékou (Mali), Angelina Peralva (France), Daniel Pécaut (France), Giorgio Alberti (Italy), Guillermo O'Donnell (in memoriam, Argentina), Jean-Michel Blanquer (France) Julio Cotler (Peru), Sérgio Costa (Germany), Shepard Forman (United States) and Simon Schwartzman (Brazil).

[8][9] Recently the Edelstein Center has completed a research on the use of computers and Internet by public school teachers in Rio de Janeiro.

A comprehensive policy needs to properly training teachers, in particular confronting the difficulties of the older generation, use monitored software, and adequate maintaining the physical infrastructural and technical support for school computer labs.

Civil society played an important role in the promotion of democracy during the period of military dictatorships.

While continuing to play an important role in the defense of human rights, in many countries civil society has become a vehicle for political parties, individual politicians, unions and social movements to channel public funds for their own benefit and/or political cooptation.

Democratic Platform Plataforma Democrática is a joint initiative of the Edelstein Center and the Instituto Fernando Henrique Cardoso devoted to strengthening Latin American democratic institutions [15][16][17] and culture by fostering pluralistic debate on the social and political transformations of the region and the world.

[24][25][26] Plataforma Democrática site's includes a virtual library[27] of free access with 15.000 academic titles, more than hundred original papers and the book series The State of Democracy in Latin America.

[28] Other activities The Edelstein Center did participated in the Secretariat of the Latin American Initiative on Drugs and Democracy.

Chávez, Venezuela y la reconfiguración política de América Latina y el Caribe.

Usos, abusos y desafíos de la sociedad civil en América Latina.

São Paulo: Instituto Fernando Henrique Cardoso / Rio de Janeiro: The Edelstein Center for Social Research, 2008.

Rio de Janeiro: The Edelstein Center for Social Research, E-book Series 2, 2007.

Sociedad Civil y Democracia en América Latina: crisis y reinvención de la política.

Rio de Janeiro: The Edelstein Center for Social Research, Série E-book 1, 2006.

Rio de Janeiro: The Edelstein Center for Social Research, Working Paper 6, May 2011.

Rio de Janeiro: The Edelstein Center for Social Research, Working Paper 5, 2006.

Rio de Janeiro: The Edelstein Center for Social Research, Working Paper 4, 2006.

Rio de Janeiro: The Edelstein Center for Social Research, Working Paper 3, 2006.

Rio de Janeiro: The Edelstein Center for Social Research, Working Paper 2, 2006.

Rio de Janeiro: The Edelstein Center for Social Research, Working Paper 1, 2005.