Please join the International Relations Speaker Series as they host Michael Findley, the Erwin Centennial Professor of Government at the University of Texas at Austin.
Abstract: Humanitarian needs are at their highest since 1945, aid budgets are falling behind, and hunger is concentrating in fragile states such as Afghanistan, Pakistan, the D.R.C. and Yemen. Oppressive state and non-state actors often seek to control resource flows and can restrict humanitarian access to the most vulnerable populations, raising donor concerns that aid will be diverted from intended beneficiaries. In such settings, humanitarians face a dilemma: either deliver aid and risk supporting hostile actors and exacerbating conflict or suspend operations in the face of urgent needs. In this talk, I discuss two recent experimental evaluations of digital assistance to female-headed households in Afghanistan and Pakistan. I show how digital aid can improve food security and well-being in two of the world’s most challenging contexts, and I also contextualize these findings within a broader set of work on aid and conflict.
Michael Findley is the Frank C. Erwin, Jr. Centennial Professor of Government at UT Austin. He is also Professor (by courtesy) at the McCombs School of Business and the LBJ School of Public Affairs. He is the director of Innovations for Peace and Development (IPD), a Strauss Center Distinguished Scholar, a Provost's Teaching Fellow, and a member of EGAP.
Findley conducts interdisciplinary research on political violence, international development, illicit finance, ethics, and methodology. He publishes in leading outlets including Cambridge University Press, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, American Journal of Political Science, International Organization, Annual Review of Political Science, Strategic Management Journal, Journal of International Business Studies, Management Science, Penn Law Review, Public Choice, American Statistician, and Complexity. He currently conducts fieldwork in Colombia, Afghanistan, DRC, Sudan, South Sudan, South Africa, and Uganda. Findley's policy work includes collaborations with the World Bank, USAID, African Development Bank, UN FACTI, UNICEF, UN Peacebuilding Fund, UN Development Program, International Aid Transparency Initiative, and many aid recipient country governments.
Ariel Sowers
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