Kellogg Institute at the University of Notre Dame

It's Graduate Student Appreciation Week and Kellogg ❤️ our grad students! We're giving away a Kellogg backpack each day to grad participants in our activities and today we're featuring Phd alum Michele Waslin in the Kellogg Lecture series. Check out all of our events this week: https://bit.ly/47esoHu

Kellogg Visiting Fellow Cristian Velix presents a brief synopsis of his project “Media Narratives About Corruption in Public Infrastructure Projects in Guatemala,” which centers on corruption related to road construction and maintenance projects in Guatemala during the Vamos party administration.

This Friday, join Kellogg's Latin American Critical Cultural Studies Working Group for a workshop with internationally renowned artist Tania Bruguera from 1:00 to 3:30pm. Space is limited, so register today at https://bit.ly/46CzHbL

TODAY, Thursday, October 2, in our monthly Democracy & Dialogue Series:
Explore how broad, diverse coalitions have been critical in advancing democracy globally with Peter Cummings, former Research & Evaluation Officer with the Eurasia Foundation. 4pm ET in person or online: https://bit.ly/46Ura3S

Inter-American Course on Migration and Protection
October 8-10, 2025
Available in Spanish and English - register today!
https://bit.ly/42MAjJu

A new Democracy Paradox podcast episode has just dropped - listen as Javier Corrales discusses how leaders employ extremist policies and ideological rhetoric to consolidate executive power, drawing comparisons between Venezuela, the United States, and other global contexts: https://bit.ly/3Iqaok5

Kellogg Visiting Fellow Eric Lemus presents an overview of his Kellogg project “Navigating Opacity: Transparency and Public Information in Authoritarian Contexts," discussing efforts to monitor patterns of opacity and government corruption in El Salvador.

New on Global Stage: Patrick McQuestion talks with Thomas Carothers (@carnegieendowment.org) about US democracy promotion, USAID changes, and resilience in democracy today. Listen for insights on the challenges and future of democracy. 🎧 https://bit.ly/4nMfrKw
#Democracy #Podcast #KelloggInstitute

Visiting Fellow Pablo Forni presents a brief synopsis of the research project, "The Theology of the People and its Popular Ministry as a Social Movement in Argentina," which he is working on during his Visiting Fellowship at Kellogg this fall.

📢 Tues, Sept 22 | 12:30 PM ET | Hesburgh Ctr C103
@vickymurillo.bsky.social (Columbia U.) presents her new volume on why Latin Americans grow disillusioned w/ democracy despite social gains. In person + livestream available: https://bit.ly/4nqvL3N
#LatinAmerica #GlobalDemocracy #KelloggInstitute

Kellogg Welcomes Six New PhD Fellows | Kellogg Institute For International Studies The Kellogg Institute welcomes six new PhD Fellows to its ranks of Doctoral Student Affiliates. This year's recipients will enrich the Kellogg scholarly community in the years ahead with diverse perspectives shaped by their disciplines and distinct back...

We are delighted to welcome six new PhD Fellows: Jiahe (Andy) Cao, Juan Carlos Hernández Briones, Valentina Salazar, Carly Sandstrom, Ryan Snyder, and Ziyi Wu. This new cohort brings fresh perspectives from a variety of disciplines and backgrounds. Read more about them: https://bit.ly/4nCHRXa

Join us today for a lecture by our new colleague Enrique Seira, a political economist who has just joined ND. His talk will share insights from his research on how corruption involving top-level politicians impacts democratic values and participation. Live-stream at: https://bit.ly/3Kp1GTq

Join Kellogg’s Visiting Fellows program at the University of Notre Dame! We seek scholars and practitioners from diverse social science disciplines working on global democracy. Apply today to advance your research in an ideal scholarly environment.

🔗 Learn more & apply: kellogg.nd.edu/vfellowships

Former Kellogg PhD Fellow Benjamin Garcia Holgado Receives Prestigious APSA Dissertation Award | Kellogg Institute For International Studies The Kellogg Institute congratulates former PhD Fellow Benjamín García Holgado, who has been honored with the 2025 Edward S. Corwin Award by the American Political Science Association (APSA). The award honors the best doctoral dissertation in the field o...

@bgarciaholgado.bsky.social, former KI PhD Fellow, receives the Edward S. Corwin Award this week at APSA for the best public law dissertation! “The Judicial Bulwark: Courts and the Populist Erosion of Democracy,” offers insights into safeguarding democratic governance. More: http://bit.ly/4gudPTm

CORRECTION:
Congrats to Kellogg PhD Fellow alum Natán Skigin (@natanski.bsky.social) for winning both APSA Political Psychology & Experiments Section Best Dissertation Awards for “Challenging Stigma from Below.” Honors presented this week at APSA.

Read more: http://bit.ly/4no9hjn

Why Democracy by Referendum Seldom Works | Journal of Democracy Ecuador’s presidents have a history of asking the public to back their initiatives rather than building political coalitions to accomplish their goals. The country’s current president is no different…

Proud to share a great essay with the Journal of Democracy by Kellogg's own Eduardo Pagés: "Why Democracy by Referendum Seldom Works," a must-read for anyone interested in democracy’s challenges today.
Read it here: bit.ly/42gldf2
#Democracy #Ecuador #GlobalDemocracy

En primavera 2023, conversamos con Fr. José María Tojeira, defensor de derechos humanos en El Salvador. Recordamos su legado tras su fallecimiento la semana pasada. Escucha el episodio completo: https://bit.ly/41gqpZA #DerechosHumanos #Paz #Justicia

In Memory of Father José María Tojeira (1947–2025) | Kellogg Institute For International Studies Father José María Tojeira In the decades that followed, Father Tojeira held several key roles. He served as Provincial of the Jesuits in Central America, as a Professor and President of the Central American University (UCA), as Director of the Human Rig...

We mourn the passing of Fr. José María Tojeira, S.J., Jesuit priest and tireless human rights advocate. He spoke at our 2023 Romero Days and was featured on our Global Stage podcast. Tribute by Abby Córdova: https://bit.ly/41KFXeK

Kellogg’s Guillermo Trejo (faculty fellow) & Paola Bautista (visiting fellow) will speak at The State of Democracy in the Americas 🇺🇸🌎 Sept. 8 at Georgetown Univ. Watch live via Georgetown Americas Institute YouTube.

#Democracy #LatinAmerica

📖 Livestream TOMORROW – Friday, Sept 5 at 12:30pm ET:
Kellogg launches Luis Schiumerini's "Incumbency Bias: Why Political Office is a Blessing and Curse in Latin America," with commentary by Wendy Hunter (UT Austin) & @tboas.bsky.social‬ (Boston U).

🎥 Watch live/recording: https://bit.ly/47WAe9q

State Legitimacy and Sector-Level Claim-Making: Evidence from East Jerusalem | American Political Science Review | Cambridge Core State Legitimacy and Sector-Level Claim-Making: Evidence from East Jerusalem

Congrats to Kellogg Dissertation Year Fellow Hannah Early Bagdanov! Her new solo-authored American Political Science Review article explores how East Jerusalemites engage – or avoid – the state across sectors.
Read the open-access piece 👉 https://bit.ly/4p8J8He

Excited to launch Kellogg’s Democracy in Dialogue Series with John K. Glenn, former Senior Director of the National Endowment for Democracy. Join us this Thurs, Sept 4, 4 PM, Hesburgh Center C103 for “Why ‘Defending Democracy’ Isn’t Enough.” More: https://bit.ly/4nd3sFH

#Democracy #NotreDame

Where are they? A review of statistical techniques and data analysis to support the search for missing persons and the new field of data-based disappearance analysis The disappearances of individuals are complex phenomena, spanning different regions and temporal periods. Evolving

Kellogg postdoc Jorge Ruiz Reyes is a coauthor on a new paper using stats, geospatial tools & ML to advance the search for missing persons. This work pushes forward data-driven approaches to a critical human rights challenge. Congrats to Jorge & team! #HumanRights #DataScience https://bit.ly/4lNJSi0

Our annual opening reception is always a great way to welcome our on-campus community back and to launch the new academic year - yesterday's was no exception. We look forward to a great semester ahead! See more photos on Facebook: https://bit.ly/3HZOF1Z

Law enforcement at the margin of the law: Information provision and support for militarization in Mexico Democracies have turned to the militarization of public security as a primary strategy to combat organized crime. Mounting evidence demonstrates that this policy results in the escalation of violence and human rights violations. However, militarization continues to enjoy broad public support.

👏 Congrats to Faculty Fellow Abby Córdova & former PhD Fellow @tiscornia21.bsky.social‬ on their new Journal of Peace Research article, "Law enforcement at the margin of the law," which is part of their work with Kellogg's Eliminating Violence Against Women Lab.
🔗 https://bit.ly/4mC8CLd

Teaching: Will more professors rethink grading? A champion of the ungrading movement reflects on the past five years, and wonders what the future might hold.

Excited to celebrate Kellogg Faculty Fellow @susandblum.bsky.social‬ for her national recognition in The Chronicle of Higher Education! Her work on 'ungrading' is transforming how teachers think about student learning. Congrats, Susan! 👏 #KelloggInstitute #Ungrading #HigherEd
http://bit.ly/47jaC6r

CAPÍTULO 5 “Las diferencias y confrontaciones del IFE/INE con el Poder Ejecutivo Poder Legislativo” En este episodio, el Dr.Lorenzo Córdova Vianello, expresidente del Instituto Nacional Electoral (INE), ofrece una detallada exposición sobre la evolución del...

Former Kellogg Visiting Fellow Fernando Ojesto joined Lorenzo Córdova, ex-president of Mexico’s INE, in a new documentary on the risks facing Mexican democracy (in Spanish). Watch here:https://bit.ly/4n46vzY

Misunderstood Malthus: The English thinker whose name is synonymous with doom and gloom has lessons for today The English cleric and economist's name is used to malign critics of progress. But historical context sheds a different light on Malthus' ideas, a scholar argues.

Thomas Malthus is often misunderstood. @royscranton.bsky.social, Kellogg faculty fellow, shows how Malthus’s ideas on natural limits and sustainability remain crucial as we face climate and ecological crises today. Time to rethink what “Malthusian” really means.

🎉 Congrats to @isabelguiza.bsky.social & Visiting Fellow Madai Urteaga! Their paper “Judging Property” won Best Paper Honorable Mention from @repalconference.bsky.social. It shows how judicial tenure protects independence & shapes land redistribution in Colombia. 👏 #Kellogg #ResearchRecognition

Preparations for the new academic year are underway - including capturing photos of our new cohort of Visiting Fellows! Keep an eye out for more news about them and their research projects in the coming weeks...