Biscet’s human rights activism began when he documented and exposed the widespread practice of late-term abortion carried out in the Havana maternity hospital where he served as medical director, a practice illegal under Cuban law.

His efforts resulted in his expulsion from the official Cuban National Health System and eventually to incarceration. Detained many times by the government, he has spent well over a decade in Cuban prisons. Since his release in 2011, Biscet has continued his human rights advocacy in Cuba.

Biscet will take part in a conversation about his experience and his hopes for the future of Cuba with Notre Dame law professor��, the director of the Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ, which is sponsoring Biscet’s visit to campus.

As a member of the, Carozza was called upon to rule on Biscet’s petition before that body in 2006. Ultimately, the commission found Cuba in violation of its human rights obligations in the illegal imprisonment and mistreatment of Biscet and a large group of his fellow political prisoners. Because Biscet was in prison at that time and the commission is not allowed access to Cuba, Carozza and Biscet will now be meeting for the first time.

During his imprisonment, Biscet was declared a “prisoner of conscience” by Amnesty International. In 2007, in absentia, he was awarded the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush, as well as the Dr. Rainer Hildebrandt Human Rights Award, Germany’s most prominent human rights honor.

Following his release from prison in 2011, Biscet declined the opportunity to permanently leave Cuba. He has focused his efforts on developing��, an initiative to promote the establishment of democratic government in Cuba based on respect for human rights.

Contact: ��Karen Clay, communications manager, Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ,��kclay@nd.edu

Originally published by Elizabeth Rankin at on Oct. 10, 2017.

“Now,” she says, “faculty are competing to get ISP students.” The program began with just nine undergraduates.��Now, there are����across three classes.

This past weekend, the Kellogg Institute celebrated 15 years of the International Scholars Program with a����attended by ISP alumni from a range of classes, faculty fellows who had served as their mentors and advisers, and current International Scholars.

There was plenty of time for reconnecting at social events, including a picnic and tailgate, but also some time for reflection about the value of the program.

On Friday, three ISP alumni took part in the panel, “From Campus to Career: Kellogg International Scholars Then and Now.” Panelists included:

��

• , who is beginning doctoral studies at the University of Oxford after completing a master’s degree on a Rhodes Scholarship.



• 
  , an international economist at the U.S. Department of the Treasury.


• 
  , who works in the Office of African Affairs in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor at the U.S. State Department.

The three outlined their paths from graduation to their current posts, emphasizing to current students that they were not linear journeys.

Li, who went to Taiwan on a Fulbright and then to the Fletcher 91��Ƶ for Law and Diplomacy, used a sailing analogy to explain how she tacked from one career and learning experience to the next.

“No experiences are wasted experiences,” she said. What had seemed haphazard at the time — work on China and trade, economics and law training — proved to be excellent preparation for a job she loves.

Their time as Kellogg International Scholars — and particularly their close relationships with the faculty with whom they worked — was a firm foundation for their international careers, each one of the alumni said. “It is more like something you might see in graduate school,” Ogorzalek remarked.

Coccia agreed.��“It is unique not just to work with faculty on their research but to dive into your own research project,” he said.

Faculty fellows who had served as advisers and mentors to International Scholars over the years were delighted to reconnect with alumni during reunion events.

“As a faculty member, it’s great to hear about your experiences and I’m so proud of what you’ve done,” said , a faculty fellow who worked with Li and 13 other International Scholars over the years. “Under Holly’s leadership, ISP has turned out to be a remarkable program that has changed many lives.”

Kellogg ISP is the brainchild of then-Kellogg director����and University president��., who was serving as vice president and associate provost at the time. The program��matches undergraduates selected for the program in their freshman year with faculty fellows as paid research assistants.

It is designed to bring intellectually motivated students interested in doing international research into the Kellogg community, where they learn research skills on the job, prepare for their own independent research projects, and have the benefit of interacting with a strong community of peers.��Over the past 14 years, more than 225 students have worked with more than 100 faculty advisers.

Kellogg International Scholars have twice been named Notre Dame valedictorian and have won numerous prestigious awards, including three Rhodes Scholarships, four Boren Scholarships, and 10 Fulbrights. Last year,����was the first graduate of the program to return to Notre Dame as a member of the faculty.

“We’re going to leverage the Kellogg International Scholars Program,” said��, Marilyn Keough Dean of the new Keough 91��Ƶ of Global Affairs. In a session held in the Keough mediation room, Appleby outlined plans for the school’s undergraduate program, to debut next year, calling the ISP alumni “pioneers” in what the school is envisioning for its honors program.

More photos on the Kellogg������

��

Originally published by Elizabeth Rankin at on October 05, 2017.

Tracy Kijewski-Correa, Alexandros Taflanidis and their collaborators received funding for post-hurricane housing reconnaissance in Haiti.

Read more:.

, a dynamic, persistent and humble advocate for the poor and marginalized in his native Philippines and around the world, will receive the at a campus ceremony at 8 p.m. March 24 (Friday) in the McKenna Hall Auditorium.

Following the award presentation, the cardinal will deliver an address on integral human development. Both the ceremony and the lecture are free and open to the public.

The 32nd archbishop of Manila, Cardinal Tagle serves as the president of , a confederation of more than 160 Catholic relief organizations that work to end poverty, promote justice and restore the dignity of the most vulnerable, regardless of race or religion.

His work at Caritas, he has said, “embodies love. For us, love is a person: especially those who have been forgotten by the world, those who have been victimized by injustice, poverty, conflicts.”

“Cardinal Tagle is cut of the same cloth as Pope Francis, who named him president of Caritas,” said , director of the , which presents the award.

“He has been a tireless champion of the poor, as much by example as by word. He opens his home to the homeless and eats with them in his house. He spends time listening to the most marginalized, working to ensure that their experiences and concerns inform his ministry and the Church’s efforts to promote justice and peace.”

Known for his friendly demeanor and approachable nature, the cardinal prefers to be called by his nickname, “Chito,” instead of his full title. Media savvy, he has a large social media following, particularly on , allowing him to spread his message of hope and forgiveness to people across the globe.

Tagle has spoken out strongly about issues impacting the poor and vulnerable in the Philippines and around the world. He has stood firmly against the death penalty and political corruption and worked vigorously toward a Catholic response to issues such as the international refugee crisis and climate change.

While at Notre Dame, the cardinal is participating in the 2017 , “Soul of Development,” which celebrates the 50th anniversary of Pope Paul VI’s encyclical . The basis for many church policies on integral human development, it will be the focus of Cardinal Tagle’s address: “Living Out the Legacy of Populorum Progressio Today and Tomorrow.”

On March 25, as part of the same conference, faculty fellow , Ford Program East Africa Regional Program Coordinator and Dowd will present on Ford research being undertaken in Nairobi: “Exploring Motherhood in Dandora: Kenya Mistreatment of Women Receiving Maternal Health Services.”

Cardinal Tagle will also open the annual commemoration, a project of Latin American North American Church Concerns, by celebrating Mass in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at 5:15 p.m. March 24, 37 years to the day after Archbishop Óscar Romero was assassinated in El Salvador.

The Ford Family Notre Dame Award for Human Development and Solidarity, presented by the , recognizes substantial contributions to human development through research, practice, public service or philanthropy. Recipients are honored for standing in solidarity with those in deepest need, supporting them to become agents of their own change.

Past recipients of the award include , now the deputy secretary-general of the United Nations; ; social entrepreneur , CEO and founder of Acumen; development economist and Nobel laureate ; , whose co-founders Paul Farmer and Ophelia Dahl accepted the award on its behalf; and , the United Nations Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Malaria.

The Ford Family Program in Human Development 91��Ƶ and Solidarity is a program of the . Part of the University of Notre Dame’s new , the Kellogg Institute is an interdisciplinary community of scholars and students from across the University and around the world that promotes research, provides educational opportunities and builds linkages related to democracy and human development, two topics critical to our world.

Contact: Rev. Robert Dowd, C.S.C., Ford Family Program, 574-631-7756, rdowd1@nd.edu

The Sociologist’s new book examines why expensive media campaigns that try to harness the power of culture to change beliefs or behavior often fail.

Read more:.

The Katz Prize is awarded annually by the American Historical Association to honor the best book in Latin American and Caribbean history.

Read more:

Renowned physician and anthropologist Dr. Paul Farmer, widely known for his work on global health, human rights and the consequences of social inequality, will deliver the lecture “” at 7 p.m. April 19 (Tuesday). Hosted by the at the University of Notre Dame, the lecture is free and open to the public. It will be held in DeBartolo Hall, Room 101, with a reception to follow in the Hesburgh Center for International 91��Ƶ Great Hall.

In his address, Farmer, the co-founder and chief strategist of (PIH), will describe his 30-year journey of innovation in global health. In particular, he will discuss “accompaniment,” a model for international development that promotes sustainable partnerships and investment in local and national institutions.

“Accompaniment begins most simply with the idea of walking with those in need, with radical implications for individuals, the aid community and the policy arena,” said Kellogg Director .

“Introduced to him through the work of our own , this notion of accompaniment has long inspired Paul Farmer and infuses the broader work of Partners In Health. We have a remarkable opportunity to learn from his inspirational work, and together collaborate in an ongoing dialogue and book project.”

The public lecture is the culmination of “,” a three-day series of interrelated events hosted by the Kellogg Institute. Convening innovators of the accompaniment approach, the series investigates the policy and practice of accompaniment as a transformative paradigm for foreign assistance.

A select group of scholars and practitioners will discuss a book manuscript that uses the concept of accompaniment to re-envision the delivery of foreign aid. Authored by Farmer and other practitioners, the volume is edited by Kellogg Executive Director and , chief adviser to Farmer.

“Putting accompaniment into practice is not easy,” said Reifenberg. “It has been tremendously rewarding to partner with Paul Farmer, PIH and other practitioners and scholars as we attempt to articulate what accompaniment means in the lives of practitioners and the people they serve. We think this will be an inspirational volume, which will help individuals and institutions to operationalize accompaniment in practice.”

In 2011, Farmer accepted what is now known as the on behalf of Partners In Health. Presented by the Kellogg Institute’s Ford Program, the award honors individuals or organizations that stand in solidarity with those in deepest need. The ceremony allowed him to reconnect with Father Gustavo and led to an ongoing dialogue. The results include “” (Orbis, 2013) as well as the current “From Aid to Accompaniment” project.

In addition to his work with PIH, Farmer is Kolokotrones University Professor and chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical 91��Ƶ, chief of the Division of Global Health Equity at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and U.N. special adviser to the secretary-general on Community-Based Medicine and Lessons from Haiti. He earned his Ph.D. and M.D. at Harvard University.

The Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ, an integral part of the University of Notre Dame’s new , is an interdisciplinary community of scholars and students from across the University and around the world that promotes research, provides educational opportunities and builds links related to two topics critical to our world — democracy and human development.

Contact: Beth Simpson Hlabse, Kellogg Institute, 574-631-0663, esimpso4@nd.edu

A five-year collaboration between institutions in the United States and Sweden has resulted in a new, public dataset for researchers of democracy.

The first of its kind, the newly released (V-Dem) dataset provides scholars with vast research opportunities on hundreds of aspects of democracy. Researchers will be able to use the large, comprehensive set to examine hundreds of indicators, and will have the ability to compare data from different times and locations.

A milestone for the study of democracy, the complete dataset covers some 15 million data points across 173 countries from 1900 to the present, and has been made public for use by researchers and citizens around the world.

V-Dem is an international effort to provide the global community with the world’s most comprehensive, accurate and detailed democracy ratings, with institutional homes at the at the University of Notre Dame and the in the Department of Political Science, University of Gothenburg, Sweden. Taking a new approach to conceptualizing and measuring democracy, V-Dem is a collaboration among hundreds of scholars across the world, including many connected with Kellogg.

According to Notre Dame political scientist and Kellogg Faculty Fellow , one of four principal investigators who have led the five-year effort, the data release promises to “revolutionize” quantitative research on democracy.

“Any quantitative study that has ever been done on the nature, causes or consequences of democracy could be redone and done better using the V-Dem data,” he said. “The new democracy indicators are more reliable, more valid, more comprehensive and more nuanced than data previously available.”

The dataset includes about 350 fine-grained democracy indicators, 34 mid-level indices and five high-level indices — marking electoral, liberal, participatory, deliberative and egalitarian democracy — going back to the year 1900.

“For the past two years, members of the public have had access to some of the data, but only in the form of interactive graphs,” said Coppedge. “Now they can download it all, free of charge, and use it for their own statistical analyses.”

With the new democracy data, scholars and policymakers will be able to look at relationships among different aspects of democracy as well as the relationships between democracy and other factors, with the potential to use very specific quantitative data to explore questions such as why some countries are democratic and others less so.

“We can also look at the consequences of democracy, or lack of democracy, for economic growth, human development, human rights, even big questions of war and peace — many things we really care about,” said Coppedge.

“We in the West share a commitment to democratic forms of government, but it has been surprisingly hard to demonstrate beneficial consequences of democracy aside from the intrinsic benefit of political liberty. V-Dem data will help us distinguish more clearly between the goals that democracy can and cannot help us achieve.”

V-Dem has already generated an outpouring of studies by members of the project, who have had access to partial and preliminary versions of the data for several years.

With fellow V-Dem researchers Staffan I. Lindberg, University of Gothenburg; Svend-Erik Skaaning, Aarhus University; and Jan Teorell, Lund University, Coppedge co-authored “Measuring High Level Democratic Principles Using the V-Dem Data,” forthcoming in the journal , which explains how the project measures five varieties of democracy and traces trends in these indices since 1900.

As of Jan. 4, the full dataset can be downloaded from the , free of charge. The data are also available for viewing in user-friendly online analysis tools . An archive of all previous versions of the data, including the coder-level data and uncertainty estimates, is maintained at , a project of the at Notre Dame.

Coppedge, along with Kellogg Ph.D. fellows Fernando Bizzarro Neto and Lucía Tiscornia and Kellogg research affiliate Benjamin Denison, will lead a V–Dem Data Launch Workshop on Jan. 22 (Friday) at Notre Dame, which will be followed by an advanced workshop in February. An international conference to be held at the Kellogg Institute in fall 2016 will provide an early opportunity for researchers beyond the core V-Dem team to present analyses using the data.

The V-Dem project has been made possible with funding from Riksbankens Jubileumsfond, the Knut & Alice Wallenberg Foundation, Sweden’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the European Commission/EuroAID, the Swedish Research Council, International IDEA, Denmark’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Danish Research Council, the Canadian International Development Agency, NORAD/Norwegian Research Council and the Quality of Government Institute, with co-funding from the University of Gothenburg and the Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ and other entities at the University of Notre Dame.

Contact: Michael Coppedge, 574-631-7036, coppedge.1@nd.edu

Faculty Fellow Jaimie Bleck explores the relationship between schooling, political knowledge and political participation in Mali in a new book.

Read more: http://kellogg.nd.edu/news/bleck.shtml.

Global human development advocate will receive this year’s at a campus ceremony at noon Nov. 16 (Monday) in the Hesburgh Center Auditorium at the University of Notre Dame.

The United Nations secretary general’s special adviser on post-2015 development planning, Mohammed was recently confirmed as senior minister to the federal government in her native Nigeria. As part of the award ceremony, she will deliver a free, public lecture, “The Courage of Conviction: The Sustainable Development Goals in Nigeria, Africa and Beyond.”

“[These are] tough times in the world,” Mohammed says. “Much of our troubles are a question of values, mindsets and a total lack of global leadership that has the courage of conviction.”

The Ford Family Notre Dame Award recognizes Mohammed’s tireless efforts to understand and illuminate the true causes of poverty and to unleash human creativity and potential in effective and sustainable ways around the world.

“Amina Mohammed brings together head and heart,” says , director of the , which presents the award. “She is passionate about human well-being — and knows the power of evidence-based efforts to tackle extreme poverty.”

Mohammed’s visit to Notre Dame will strengthen her relationship with the and the broader , connecting her with Notre Dame experts in development and Africa as she builds her new Nigerian policy portfolio.

A master negotiator who led the process within the international community to develop and adopt the U.N.’s , Mohammed is known for her ability to engage people across diverse backgrounds. She has more than 30 years of experience as an international development practitioner in civil society, government and international organizations, and academia.

The Ford Family Notre Dame Award for Human Development and Solidarity, presented by the Ford Family Program in Human Development 91��Ƶ and Solidarity, recognizes substantial contributions to human development through research, practice, public service or philanthropy. Recipients are honored for standing in solidarity with those in deepest need, supporting them to become agents of their own change. The award is named in honor of University Trustee Emeritus Doug Ford and his wife, Kathy, whose generosity helped to establish the Ford Program.

Past recipients of the award include L’Arche and its visionary founder, Jean Vanier; social entrepreneur Jacqueline Novogratz, CEO and founder of Acumen; development economist and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen; Partners In Health, whose co-founders Paul Farmer and Ophelia Dahl accepted the award on its behalf; and Patti and Ray Chambers, the United Nations secretary general’s special envoy for malaria.

The Ford Family Program in Human Development 91��Ƶ and Solidarity is a program of the Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ. Part of the University of Notre Dame’s new Keough 91��Ƶ of Global Affairs, the Kellogg Institute is an interdisciplinary community of scholars and students from across the University and around the world that promotes research, provides educational opportunities and builds links related to democracy and human development, two topics critical to our world.

Contact: Rev. Robert Dowd, C.S.C., 574-631-7756, rdowd1@nd.edu

, a noted Nigerian advocate for justice, democracy and human development, will speak at the University of Notre Dame on Oct. 29 (Thursday). His lecture, “,” is sponsored by the . Free and open to the public, the lecture will be held at 4 p.m. in the Hesburgh Center Auditorium.

A respected scholar as well as the bishop of the Diocese of Sokoto, Nigeria, Kukah has played an active role in Nigerian civil society and is well-known in Africa and beyond as a champion of respectful Christian-Muslim relations.

He has served on Nigeria’s Truth Commission, the Political Reform Conference for Nigeria and the country’s Electoral Reform Committee and helped to negotiate an end to the Shell-Ogoni conflict in Nigeria’s delta region. He chaired the Committee on Interreligious Dialogue in Nigeria and West Africa and was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI as a member of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue.

In his lecture, Kukah will discuss how Christian and Islamic religious institutions and religious beliefs have promoted or inhibited integral human development and how religious institutions or universities might better promote such development.

During his visit to Notre Dame, Kukah will also take part in the panel “” at 4 p.m. Tuesday (Oct. 27) in C103 Hesburgh Center. He will be joined on the panel by Kellogg Faculty Fellow , assistant professor of political science and director of the ; , associate dean for policy and practice in the ; and , professor of Islamic studies, and Department of History.

Kukah has written widely on democracy, religion and politics in Nigeria. He holds a Ph.D. in political science from the 91��Ƶ of Oriental and African 91��Ƶ, University of London, and has been a senior Rhodes fellow at St. Antony’s College, University of Oxford, and an Edward Mason Fellow at the Kennedy 91��Ƶ of Government, Harvard University.

The Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ, part of the University of Notre Dame’s new Keough 91��Ƶ of Global Affairs, is an interdisciplinary community of scholars and students from across the University and around the world that promotes research, provides educational opportunities and builds linkages related to two topics critical to our world: democracy and human development.

Contact: Elizabeth Rankin, Kellogg Institute, 574-631-9184, erankin3@nd.edu

Renowned economist Daron Acemoğlu, co-author of the best-seller “Why Nations Fail” whose acclaimed research addresses why some countries are rich and others poor, will deliver the second annual at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 30 (Wednesday). Open to the public, the lecture will be held in the McCartan Courtroom of the Eck Hall of Law on the University of Notre Dame campus.

“Like the renowned social scientist Guillermo O’Donnell, whom this lecture honors, Acemoğlu is known for his creativity in bringing together issues of democracy and human development in new and innovative ways,” said Director .

“I am delighted that the Notre Dame community will have the opportunity to engage with such a stimulating thinker on these critical global themes, which lie at the heart of the Kellogg Institute’s work.”

The Elizabeth and James Killian Professor of Economics at MIT and one of the most cited economists in the world, Acemoğlu combines wide-ranging interests in political economy and macro- and microeconomics.

“Daron is one of the most influential economists of our generation,” said Kellogg faculty fellow , the Keough-Hesburgh Professor of Economics. “He has made important contributions to many fields, most notably his work demonstrating how particular economic and political institutions foster economic development.”

In 2005, Acemoğlu was the recipient of the prestigious John Bates Clark Medal, awarded for significant achievement by an American economist under 40 and often seen as a precursor to a Nobel Prize.

Acemoğlu’s research has reached an audience far beyond academia in his best-selling book with Harvard political scientist James Robinson: “” (2012). A native of Turkey, Acemoğlu holds a Ph.D. from the London 91��Ƶ of Economics.

The Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ established the Guillermo O’Donnell Memorial Lecture series in 2013 in honor of , the institute’s founding director. Former Chilean President Ricardo Lagos delivered the inaugural lecture in the series at the Latin American 91��Ƶ Association (LASA) International Congress in August 2014.

The annual lecture is designed to carry forward the enduring legacy of O’Donnell’s scholarship by focusing attention on work furthering its core themes, the twin aspirations of political participation and human welfare. Speakers for the series are chosen from among distinguished scholars, public intellectuals and policymakers who have made major contributions to understanding or promoting democracy and human development around the world. For more information, visit .

UPDATE Sept. 3: Due to last-minute political developments in Guatemala, Jose Maria Argueta is unable to present his Kellogg Institute lecture scheduled for Sept. 3.

Two prominent public figures from Latin America, both scholars as well as statesmen, will speak at the University of Notre Dame in September, hosted by the . Their lectures, to focus on Latin American policy and global affairs, are free and open to the public.

, the ambassador and permanent representative of Guatemala to the Organization of American States (OAS), will present lessons drawn from his experience dealing with conflict around the world and especially in Central America. His lecture will take place at 4 p.m. Sept. 3 (Thursday) in Hesburgh Center for International 91��Ƶ, Room C103.

, a former Kellogg Institute visiting fellow who is now Chile’s ambassador to the United States, will speak at 5 p.m. Sept. 21 (Monday) in Visitation Hall of Remick Commons. In dialogue with Kellogg Institute Director , the former president of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Valdés will discuss the current state of affairs in Latin America, with particular attention to the relationship between Chile and the United States.

“It is a great honor to be able to bring these two distinguished ambassadors to Notre Dame to share their experience and insights with us,” said Carozza. “I am particularly delighted to welcome back Juan Gabriel Valdés to the Kellogg community, where he worked on an early version of his book on the ‘Chicago boys,’ the economists who took advantage of the Augusto Pinochet regime to implement a free market strategy in Chile.”

Both men have long histories of public service as well as academic achievement.

The former ambassador to Japan and Peru, Argueta served as Guatemala’s first civilian national security adviser and most recently as secretary of strategic intelligence. He coauthored a conflict resolution method instrumental in the Guatemalan and Salvadoran peace processes, and a way to institutionalize the presidential decision-making process.

In exile during the early Pinochet years, Valdés played a key role in efforts to advance the return of democracy to Chile in the early 1990s. He has since served as Chile’s foreign minister, ambassador to Spain and Argentina, permanent representative to the United Nations, and the U.N. secretary general’s special representative to Haiti and head of the U.N. Stabilization Mission in Haiti. The author of “Pinochet’s Economists: The Chicago 91��Ƶ of Economics in Chile” (Cambridge University Press, 1995), he holds a Ph.D. from Princeton University.

The Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ, an integral part of the at the University of Notre Dame, is an interdisciplinary community of scholars and students from across the University and around the world that promotes research, provides educational opportunities and builds linkages related to two topics critical to our world — democracy and human development.

Contact: Elizabeth Rankin, Kellogg Institute, 574-631-9184, erankin3@nd.edu

The at the University of Notre Dame has announced a public lecture by world-renowned economist . Special adviser to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on U.N. development goals and twice named among Time magazine’s 100 most influential world leaders, Sachs is widely considered one of the world’s leading experts on the fight against global poverty.

His public address, “The Age of Sustainable Development,” will be held at 7 p.m. Feb. 26 (Thursday) in Washington Hall. The lecture will discuss holistic approaches to address extreme poverty, environmental degradation and political-economic injustice, with compassion, moral judgment and respect for human dignity as critical as technical skills in that effort.

“The Kellogg Institute is honored to host Jeffrey Sachs at Notre Dame,” said , institute director. “He is a compelling and provocative thinker who is at the forefront of the development of the U.N.’s post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals. Notably, he links economic development to larger issues of human development around the world.”

Sachs’ work has taken him to more than 125 countries, where he has advised dozens of leaders and worked closely with many international organizations. Recently, he has worked closely with Pope Francis and the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, speaking to the disastrous consequences of what the Pope terms the “globalization of indifference.”

He is also a prolific author, with several bestselling titles including “The End of Poverty” and “The Price of Civilization.” His most recent book, “The Age of Sustainable Development,” with foreword by Ban Ki-moon, is forthcoming in March.

Sachs’ public lecture is a free but ticketed event, with tickets available at LaFortune Student Center box office beginning Thursday (Feb. 12).

Sachs will also give the keynote address at this year’s student-led hosted by the Kellogg Institute’s . Conference registration is required to attend this lecture.

The Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ at the University of Notre Dame is an interdisciplinary community of scholars and students from across the University and around the world that promotes research, provides educational opportunities and builds links related to two topics critical to our world — democracy and human development.

Contact: Karen Clay, Kellogg Institute Communications Manager, 574-631-7118, kclay@nd.edu

Visionary music educator was awarded the final at a private campus ceremony on Sept. 22 in recognition of his extraordinary work fighting poverty and violence and developing whole, successful young people through classical music.

Director , who made the presentation, honored Abreu for “his extraordinary life work” — the creation and nurturing of , a transformative network of music education centers and youth orchestras that now reaches around the globe.

Trained as an economist, organist and conductor, Abreu founded El Sistema as an antidote to the violence of his native Venezuela in 1975. The self-esteem and character his students develop through rigorous arts training helps them break out of the cycle of poverty, he believes.

“Music is an agent of social development in the highest sense, because it transmits the highest values — solidarity, harmony, mutual compassion. It has the ability to unite an entire community,” Abreu has said on several occasions.

The award ceremony, held in the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center’s , was preceded by a musical performance organized by Kellogg Institute Faculty Fellow , associate director of performance in the University’s . Notre Dame doctoral students Mary Catherine Levri and Kevin Vaughn presented pieces on the organ, one of Abreu’s favorite instruments, and J. J. Wright conducted the Notre Dame Vocale.

“Abreu believes that the discipline of orchestral practice can transform the lives of children at risk by creating a new family and a new sense of identity for them,” said Téllez, a fellow Venezuelan. “The way Abreu has applied this notion to deliberately overcome the terrible economic and social hardships endured by children in Venezuela has been extraordinary.”

The countless children who attend El Sistema’s music centers in Venezuela receive free instruments and lessons, and no child is turned away. Some of Abreu’s students have become international stars — Gustavo Dudamel, music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, is the most famous example — and El Sistema’s success has been replicated in more than 25 countries around the world, including the United States.

The award ceremony had been postponed several times after it was initially planned to take place in Venezuela. In the end, it was especially fitting that Abreu accepted the Prize on the Notre Dame campus as the event marked the 12th and final Notre Dame Prize presentation.

Since 2000, the Notre Dame Prize for Distinguished Public Service in Latin America has celebrated the significant role visionary public figures play in strengthening democracy and improving the well-being of citizens across Latin America and the Caribbean. In a long partnership between the Coca-Cola Foundation and the Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ, the University has honored a dozen Latin American leaders in a range of fields for their efforts to enhance the region’s public welfare. Previous recipients include:

• Presidents — Patricio Aylwin of Chile, Fernando Henrique Cardoso and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil, who shared the Prize, and César Gaviria of Colombia.
• Economic development specialists — Enrique Iglesias of Uruguay and María Otero of Bolivia.
• Human rights activists — Sofía Macher of Peru, Helen Mack Chang of Guatemala and José Zalaquett of Chile.
• Religious leaders — Cardinal Oscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga of Honduras, and most recently, Archbishop Louis Kébreau of Haiti.

“Each in his or her own way, these distinguished figures exemplify — in their courageous and persistent efforts to make their countries, the region and even the world a better place — the critical challenges of democracy and human development that lie at the heart of the Kellogg Institute’s work,” said Carozza.

The award carries a $15,000 cash prize, with a matching amount donated to a charitable organization recommended by the laureate. Upon the recommendation of Abreu, the matching prize was donated to El Sistema.

When USAID announced winners of a new, nationwide competition for innovative projects in the field of democracy, human rights and governance last week, scholars associated with the University of Notre Dame’s had won two of the coveted nine awards.

Notre Dame political scientist and economist Philippe LeMay-Boucher of Scotland’s Heriot-Watt University received a $90,000 grant to in rebuilding civil society and democracy in Mali, where a recent coup and insurgency has torn apart a state known for inter-ethnic tolerance.

“We are interested in the role these indigenous informal institutions play in Mali’s post-conflict reconstruction — and in particular if they are able to help rebuild trust between ethnic groups and faith in democracy,” said Bleck.

Notre Dame political scientist , and University of Virginia economist Molly Lipscomb received a $75,000 grant to study the link between public health, good governance and democratic politics in East Africa. They are building on a project already underway in western Uganda to examine whether citizens view local leaders who promote public-health initiatives as more popular and effective than other leaders.

“What is in the best interest of politicians is not always in the best interest of the public in the developing world,” said Dowd. “We want to see how good public service delivery can also be good politics at the local level.”

Rev. Robert Dowd, C.S.C.

Both projects, combining regional expertise in Africa with cutting-edge methodology, stem from interdisciplinary research collaborations developed at the Kellogg Institute, where Bleck and Dowd are faculty fellows and Dowd directs the .

Bleck, the Ford Family Assistant Professor of Political Science, and LeMay-Boucher found immediate common interest in West Africa when he arrived at the institute last fall on a . Lipscomb and Dowd’s collaboration dates to her time as a Kellogg faculty fellow, before moving to the University of Virginia in 2012.

The projects benefited from initial Kellogg seed grants that the researchers leveraged for additional funding. In the case of Bleck and LeMay-Boucher, the provided expert assistance as the pair developed their USAID proposal.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to develop our project in Mali with great flexibility,” said LeMay-Boucher of the new funding.

Selected from a pool of 103 proposals, the USAID grants are issued through the implemented by the Institute of International Education. The research findings will inform the field programs of USAID’s (DRG Center), which is integrating human rights, accountability and civil society issues throughout its core development work.

The new grants were made possible with support from the American people and by funding from the DRG Center and the Bureau for Africa’s Office of Sustainable Development.

Contact: Elizabeth Rankin, 574-631-9184, erankin3@nd.edu

Two prominent South African participants in the anti-apartheid struggle will speak at the University of Notre Dame on Wednesday (March 19) and April 3 (Thursday) as part of the “” series. One a liberation theologian and political activist, the other the “Jackie Robinson of South Africa,” they each played a crucial role in moving their nation out of apartheid.

“It is critical that we reflect on Mandela in order to clarify our understanding of the man and his legacy at the moment when so many people remember his death, but not his life,” said Faculty Fellow , who organized the series as co-chair of the working group.

Theologian Allan Boesak, the former president of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, will deliver a talk at 5 p.m. March 19 in the Hesburgh Center Auditorium. Boesak served as patron of the United Democratic Front, one of the most important anti-apartheid movements of the 1980s. He will speak on the moral consequences of the African National Congress’ decision to take up arms in the wake of the 1960 Sharpeville massacre.

Chester Williams broke the color barrier in 1995 when he joined the previously all-white Springboks, South Africa’s national rugby team, and became the face of the team to the nation and the world in the World Cup, as depicted in the movie “Invictus.” His iconic status drew a divided nation together and, some say, saved Mandela’s presidency. Williams will speak on his life under apartheid, his rise to rugby stardom and his time with Mandela at 5:30 p.m. April 3 in the Hesburgh Center Auditorium.

“Just as South Africa has the ‘born free’ generation — those born after the end of apartheid who are now in their 20s — many members of Notre Dame’s own community take for granted the freedoms people enjoy around the world, and have little concept of the struggle and the cost associated with those freedoms,” says Bolten, an Africa specialist who is assistant professor of anthropology and peace studies at the .

“These speakers struggled, sacrificed and took great risks to ensure they could live with their full humanity. We are looking forward to their sharing these stories with the Notre Dame community.”

Funded by the Kellogg Institute for International 91��Ƶ, the Africa Working Group provides a forum for Notre Dame faculty, graduate students and outside scholars to present and discuss cutting-edge research on Africa. Participants from a range of disciplines share a common interest in investigating Africa’s past, present and future, as well as Africa’s place in the larger global order.

The “Celebrating Mandela” series, a year-long celebration of Mandela’s life and work, began in the fall but acquired new meaning after Mandela’s death in December.

“There are many great statesmen, but Mandela was the only person who could make trust, forgiveness and hope a seductive prospect to absolutely everyone he met. His gift was not to call a perceived enemy over to his side, but to cross that line himself, put his arm around his adversary and walk with him,” said Bolten.

“Our intent has been to bring in scholars and practitioners to reflect on South African history and Mandela’s role in creating a new nation out of the ashes of the old.”

The public is welcome at both events and the receptions that follow.

Contact: Catherine Bolten, 574-631-5099, cbolten@nd.edu

A pioneer in global health and a path-breaking theologian explore their common option for the poor in a new book drawn from their respective writings, using as a springboard public and private conversations hosted by the at the University of Notre Dame.

“” (Orbis Press, 2013) will have its public launch at 7 p.m. Nov. 19 (Tuesday) in McKenna Hall Auditorium on the Notre Dame campus. The book discussion is open to the public and will be available by . Students at dozens of colleges and universities across the country are planning to attend remotely.

“What is really exciting about this book is that it features a dialogue between two giant figures in their fields — Farmer in global health and Gutiérrez in liberation theology,” said Kellogg Institute Executive Director . “It offers those who know of the work of one the opportunity to learn about the work of the other. Both have so much to teach us about human development.”

The book came about in no small part because of a fortuitous encounter on the Notre Dame campus.

When Farmer accepted the on behalf of Partners In Health in spring 2011, he had the opportunity to reconnect with one of his heroes — , the John Cardinal O’Hara Professor of Theology and a Kellogg Institute faculty fellow, whose work had long inspired his own.

That fall, Farmer returned for a public dialogue with Gutiérrez arranged by the Kellogg Institute, “.” That discussion, which continued in the days that followed, forms the core of the new work.

Introduced by University President , Farmer will present the book at the launch with commentary by Gutiérrez, Orbis Books editor-in-chief Robert Ellsberg and Ophelia Dahl, the executive director and cofounder, with Farmer, of Partners In Health. (See speaker biographies .)

The book launch is not the end of Farmer and Gutiérrez’s collaboration. They will also take part in a workshop for scholars and practitioners of international development to discuss Farmer’s concept of “accompaniment” as the guiding principle for engagement with the poor around the world. A future book, tentatively titled “From Aid to Accompaniment,” is planned.

Contact: Steve Reifenberg, Kellogg Institute Executive Director, 574-631-0517, sreifenb@nd.edu

An ambitious international research effort to illuminate why democracies around the world succeed or fail has been awarded approximately $5.8 million (37.5 million Swedish kronor) over six years by the Swedish foundation Riksbankens Jubileumsfond (RJ).

The project (V-Dem), based in the U.S. at the University of Notre Dame’s and in Europe at the University of Gothenburg’s Varieties of Democracy Institute, promises to make entirely new kinds of democracy research and policy assessment possible by quantifying democracy in all countries from 1900 to the present.

The effort is led by Notre Dame political scientist and Kellogg Institute Faculty Fellow , John Gerring of Boston University, and, in Sweden, Staffan I. Lindberg of the University of Gothenburg and Jan Teorell of Lund University. Their team includes 18 researchers at 13 universities in the U.S., Europe and Latin America, as well as the input of nearly 2,000 country experts around the world.

“V-Dem has amassed a database of 11 million data points, and by the time this grant starts, we will be nearly finished with data collection,” said Coppedge. “This grant will make it possible to immediately dive into analysis of key questions: What are the main dimensions of democracy? What are the internal and external drivers of regime changes toward or away from democracy?”

The RJ funding will allow the research team to aggregate and simplify vast quantities of data on 329 aspects of democracy as well as to identify much more precisely than has previously been possible the sequencing of various stages of democratization and the processes by which democracy spreads from one country to another.

“The V-Dem approach stands out as a large global collaboration among scholars with diverse areas of expertise and as the first project attempting to explain different varieties of democracy,” said Coppedge. “Thanks to the highly disaggregated V-Dem data, it is also the first project to explore causal mechanisms linking different aspects of democracy together.”

V-Dem researchers plan to produce a working paper series, at least one edited volume and many journal articles over the time period of the grant, Coppedge said.

In mid-2014, the data will be made freely available to anyone interested in democracy.

“V-Dem data will be used not only by researchers who want to understand the nature, causes and consequences of democratization, but also by governments and international organizations that need to assess the effectiveness of their democracy-promotion programs, students and journalists tracking progress toward democracy, and local NGOs that need reliable evidence to hold their own governments accountable,” said Coppedge.

Riksbankens Jubileumsfond is an independent Swedish foundation that promotes research in the humanities and social sciences.

Contact: Michael Coppedge, 574-631-7036, coppedge.1@nd.edu

, director of the University of Notre Dame’s and the , received the Order of Merit of Bernardo O’Higgins, Chile’s highest state honor awarded to foreign citizens, at a private ceremony on the Notre Dame campus on Monday (Dec. 17).

Chile’s permanent representative to the Organization of American States, Ambassador Darío Paya, presented the award in recognition of Carozza’s work on the (IACHR).

“He earned the admiration of the state, colleagues, citizens and victims alike,” says Paya, observing that Carozza also made an invaluable contribution to the Inter-American system as a whole by conducting long-lasting procedural reforms with “authority and impartiality.”

A specialist in comparative and international law, Carozza served as a member and then president of the IACHR from 2006 to 2010. In that role, he helped to address the abuses of past political regimes and foster the conditions for democratic governance throughout the hemisphere. In particular, he served as rapporteur for Chile.

Lauding the integrity and sincerity of Chileans working for human rights, Carozza called the award a confirmation of “a certain relationship, a belonging to the people of Chile.”

“It is important to have countries that take their obligations seriously,” he says.

The Order of Merit, which Carozza received at the level of “commander,” is named for one of Chile’s most famous founding fathers, the general Bernardo O’Higgins.

“A Chilean version of the ‘fighting Irish,’” says Paya, who noted more seriously, “no other university has stronger ties to Chile than Notre Dame.”

In his remarks, Notre Dame Provost noted Carozza’s “uncommon talent and commitment” as well as the close, long-standing relationship between Notre Dame and Chile, which he visited for the first time in Carozza’s company earlier this year.

“I saw why he is so admired in Chile and Latin America,” Burish says.