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

Presentation: “Migrant Integration and Industrial Policy in Colombia”

Presenter: Ransom Silliman is a first-year master’s degree candidate at the Institute for the Study of International Migration.

Abstract: Since 2015, over 8 million people have left Venezuela, fleeing insecurity and seeking new opportunities. As of 2024, over 2.8 million of those migrants resided in Colombia, many under the protection of the Temporary Protection Permit (TPS). While TPS has been a success for the legal inclusion of Venezuelan migrants, there have been ongoing challenges to their integration into the Colombian economy. This presentation discusses the potential for a regional tariff policy, based on a case study in Jordan involving Syrian refugees, aimed at developing industrial policy in Colombia and expanding formal employment for both Colombian and Venezuelan workers.

Presentation: “Profits from Turmoil? Market Evidence from Mexico’s Drug War and U.S. Arms Firms”

Presenter: Abby Tank and Claire Castrejon are both second-year master’s degree candidates at the Center for Latin American Studies.

Abstract: U.S. firearms manufacturers are largely shielded from liability for gun misuse, yet most weapons used by Mexican cartels and the military originate in the U.S. This paper examines how U.S. firearms and defense firms respond to events in Mexico’s War on Drugs. Using an event study, we analyze stock-price responses to the 2014–2016 capture, escape, and recapture of the Sinaloa Cartel’s leader. We find firearm manufacturers experience short-term declines, consistent with expectations of stricter gun control, while defense contractors gain, reflecting anticipated increases in security procurement. Results reveal asymmetric effects across industries due to Mexico’s security crisis.

Presentation: “Intercity Transport in the La Paz-El Alto Region: New Mobility, Spatial Stratification, and Opportunities for Integrated Metropolitan Planning”

Presenter: Sean Rafferty is a senior undergraduate student studying government and physics in Georgetown University’s College of Arts & Sciences.

Abstract: Within the heavily socioeconomically stratified La Paz-El Alto region, intercity transport links have proven essential to economic empowerment and social mobility. Chronic congestion on the major freeway and local roads, however, have traditionally attached high time costs to commutes. New mobility solutions, including an innovative aerial cable car network and city-specific bus services, have meaningfully expedited commutes, but continue to struggle under political instability, financial uncertainty, and limited expansion to informal outlying communities. Based on analysis of local news, government records, and IFI reports, I identify integrated multi-modal planning and regionalized transport governance as essential to improving metropolitan mobility.

Presentation: “Two Truths and a Lie: A Critical Analysis of President Sheinbaum’s Energy Policy Paradox”

Presenter: Emma Nicole García Gupton is a sophomore undergraduate student studying science, technology and international affairs and Latin American studies in Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.

Abstract: On Oct. 1, 2024, Claudia Sheinbaum became Mexico’s first female president, raising hopes for a green energy transition given her background in environmental engineering, sustainable development and climate research. However, her Plan México and Plan Nacional de Desarrollo reveal significant contradictions and shortcomings in achieving these goals. Despite ambitious sustainability rhetoric, both plans simultaneously reinforce fossil fuel dependency through PEMEX and CFE while pledging renewable expansion — creating an energy paradox. Compounded by vague implementation mechanisms, fiscal constraints and inadequate socioeconomic considerations, the plans fall short of the very policy standards Sheinbaum herself established in her prior academic research.