Title: Latin America Research Seminar (LARS): Wednesday, Oct. 22, 12:30-1:30 p.m.

Presenter: Pedro Arruda is a Brazilian Ph.D. student in Comparative Government, entering his third year at Georgetown University. His research spans the political economy of international development finance and the political economy of welfare states in the Global South. Before his PhD, he worked extensively on these issues in different international organizations.

Abstract: The presentation will outline the research strategy for a topic I am considering to pursue as my dissertation: testing whether the redistributive paradox holds in developing countries. The paradox challenges the idea that benefit concentration—targeting social benefits narrowly to the poorest maximizes redistribution, arguing instead that universalism—broad coverage with adequate benefits across income groups—produces stronger and more sustainable outcomes. Building on the notion of targeting within universalism, which holds that redistribution requires a universal baseline with additional support to the poor, I identify the policy spaces where trading greater progressivity for comparable expansions in universalism yields the highest returns. The project pioneers panel data for 130 developing countries and an interactive model of targeting and universalism, with preliminary results suggesting universalism dominates until very high thresholds rarely reached in the Global South. Finally, I outline strategies—from process tracing to survey and natural experiments — to capture feedback loops between welfare coalitions and universalist expansion.

Presenter: Camille Gaskin Reyes is an Urban and Sustainable Development specialist with an emphasis on natural resource, water and climate change management. She holds a Ph.D in Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Bonn in Germany, a Master’s Degree in Urban Economics and Latin American Studies at the same university, and a Master’s Degree in Natural Resource Management and Renewable Energy at the Technical University of Cologne. She is a CLAS Adjunct Professor, and prior to teaching, enjoyed a twenty-five year career at the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington. D.C. focussing on policy development, program monitoring & evaluation, the environment, urban development, energy, social and physical infrastructure. She has also worked as an international consultant for the Caribbean Development Bank, CARICOM (The Caribbean Community), Canadian CIDA, Latin American Governments, and partnered with international consulting firms on strategic planning, policy development and project cycle management. She has edited/ co-authored a textbook on Global Water Management Issues, and published articles on natural resource conflicts, sustainable tourism and climate change in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Abstract: The research examines Caribbean multi-hazard vulnerability and resilience, with emphasis on the following: key factors related to regional challenges and socio-economic impacts of climate change, environmental and natural disaster risks in diverse Caribbean environments; national and regional adaptation policies and institutional responses; strengths & weaknesses in resilience building and crisis management, coordination, information exchange & stakeholder involvement; global environmental justice and future sustainable pathways. Research is based on: literature review; case studies; statistical data bases; analysis of natural disasters and climate change effects on settlements, tourism, fisheries, regional economies and equity; coastal and land based ecosystem degradation; and inputs from academics, public officials, NGOs and residents.