The annual Latin American Social and Public Policy conference features presentations on social and public policy research in Latin America by students from the University of Pittsburgh and other universities, with comments by University of Pittsburgh faculty.

This year's conference will take place on February 14-15, 2013 at the University Club, University of Pittsburgh.

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Thursday, February 14, 2013

8:00-8:30 a.m. Breakfast (Conference Room A)

8:40-8:45 a.m. Welcome (Conference Room A)

8:45—10:45 a.m. Social and Public Policy in Latin America (Conf. Room A)

• Edgar Largaespada – Prisons: Vectors of HIV in Brazil
• Caleb Pittman – Chilean Environmental Law: Balancing Development with Ecological Concerns
• Rachel Gately – Affirmative Action and Education in Contemporary Brazil
• Maria Luisa Toro Hernandez – United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabalities: From Ratification to Implementation in Colombia
• Morgan Brown – An Examination of Participatory Budgeting in Brazil

Discussant: Jorge Delgado, University of Pittsburgh
Moderator: Nestor Castañeda-Angarita, University of Pittsburgh

11:00—12:30 p.m. Keynote Address (Ballroom A)

"The Study of Latin American Politics: From "Leninism" to "Maoism."

Dr. Kurt Weyland

Professor of Latin American Politics, University of Texas at Austin Professor Weyland's research interests focus on democratization, market reform, social policy and policy diffusion, and populism in Latin American countries including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Peru, and Venezuela.

12:30—1:30 p.m. Lunch (Ballroom A)

1:45—3:45 p.m. International Development in Latin America (Conference Room A)

• Rebecca Jeudin – Coup D’etat and Econmic Implication
• Jeffrey Nelson – Unintended Consequences of Conditional Cash Transfers in Brazil
• Samantha Seltzer –Are Conditional Cash Transfer Programs Clientelism in Disguise? A Look at the Mexican CCT Program Progresa-Oportunidades and the Evolution of Brazilian CCT Programs Fome Zero & Bolsa Família
• Andrew Reed – Those Dam Protesters: How Indigenous Participation has Shaped Hydroelectric Dam Protest Movements in Latin America

Discussant: Paul Nelson, University of Pittsburgh
Moderator: Katie Watt, University of Pittsburgh

4:00-5:30 p.m. Society and Policy (Conference Room A)

• Alejandra Boza – Catholicism and Indigenous Autonomy in Tierradentro, Colombia, 1904-1950
• Monica Jacobo Suarez – Education Policy for Equality of Educational Opportunity: Teaching Hispanic Newcomers in the U.S.
• Edgar Largaespada – Central American and Caribbean Disaster Management Open-Source Network

Discussant: John Frechione, University of Pittsburgh
Moderator: Camilo Castaneda, University of Pittsburgh

Friday, February 15, 2013

8:30 a.m. Breakfast (Conference Room A)

9:00—10:45 a.m. Political Science Panel (Conference Room A)

• Ignacio Arana – Former Latin American Presidents: Between Courts and Ballots
• Miguel Carreras – Outsiders and Executive-Legislative Conflict in Latin America
• Nestor Castaneda-Angarita – Special Interest Politics and Revenue-Raising Tax Reforms: The Latin America Case
• Cassilde Schwartz – The Legitimacy Trap: Institutional Design, Outcomes, and Lessons from Latin American Judiciaries
• Sofia Vera – Low Legislative Reelection Rates in Latin America: The Peruvian Case

Discussant: Kurt Weyland, Univeristy of Texas, Austin
Moderator: Maria Escorcia, University of Pittsburgh

11:00 a.m. —12:00 p.m. Faculty Speaker (Conference Room A)