Property, Poverty and Development - Fall 2021

The goal of the seminar is to examine the relationship between property and poverty with a particular focus on the work of Hernando de Soto. More generally, we will consider what happens to property rights and entitlements during periods of social change, and the implications of these changes for whether a country and its citizens remain poor. Case studies will be taken from across the developing world, with a particular focus on Latin America and the Caribbean. Special attention will be paid to the role of formal legal institutions in maintaining or transforming existing economic interests and social arrangements

This course DOES NOT satisfies the upper-level writing seminar requirement.