Governance Uncovered: Local Politics and Development

This episode is the second half of our interview with Professor Pearl Robinson of Tufts University, conducted as part of our series featuring interviews with pioneering women in political science. Pearl Robinson is a trailblazing scholar of African Politics, former president of the African Studies Association, and an advocate for amplifying voices of African descent in the academy. Anna Mwaba, ass...

This episode is an interview with Professor Evelyne Huber of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, conducted as part of our Pathbreaking Women in Comparative Politics series, featuring interviews with pioneering women in political science.   Evelyne Huber is a trailblazing scholar of democracy, inequality and welfare states, former president of the Latin American Studies Assoc...

Episode Description: This episode features an interview with Tufts Professor Pearl Robinson, conducted by Anna Mwaba, assistant professor of government at Smith College, and Tumi Makgetla, senior lecturer in political studies at the University of Cape Town. Professor Pearl Robinson is a trailblazing scholar of African politics, former president of the African Studies Association, and a lifelong ad...

This episode features an interview with Cornell Professor Emerita Valerie Bunce, conducted by Frances Cayton, a PhD student in the Department of Government, and Prisca Jöst, a post-doctoral fellow in the Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy, at Cornell University on May 23, 2025. Professor Valerie Bunce is one of the most influential voices in comparative politics and international relations. Pro...

This episode features an interview with Barbara Geddes, conducted by Department of Political Science at Yale University graduate students Jonathan Elkobi and Saumyaa Gupta via zoom on April 17, 2025. Professor Barbara Geddes has fundamentally reshaped how political scientists understand authoritarian regimes, state capacity and institutional development. She is currently Professor Emerita of Polit...

This episode features an interview with Professor Susan Rose-Ackerman that was conducted by Nyché Andrew and Manasi Rao in New Haven, CT on April 3, 2025. Professor Susan Rose Ackerman is one of the most influential scholars in the fields of law and political science; she is currently the Henry R. Luce Professor Emeritus of law and political science at Yale University. Born in 1942 in Mineola...

Governance Uncovered is brought to you by the Governance and Local Development Institute at the University of Gothenburg, and supported by the Swedish Research Council.    This episode is the first in a special series in collaboration with Kate Baldwin at Yale University, featuring interviews with pioneering women who have left a lasting mark on political science.   In this episode...

Governance Uncovered is brought to you by the Governance and Local Development Institute at the University of Gothenburg, and supported by the Swedish Research Council.  In this episode, we are joined by Ryan Knox, Souraya Hammoud, and Gunnar Andersson from SALAR International during the GLD-SALAR book launch event, featuring discussions around GLD’s recent edited volume, Decentralization, Lo...

In this episode, we welcome Steve Monroe to discuss his newest book,  Mirages of Reform: The Politics of Elite Protectionism in the Arab World (Cornell University Press, 2025). Together, Steve and Ellen examine how elites across the Arab world maintain economic privileges despite apparent trade liberalization. Steve sheds light on how conventional measures of economic reform of...

Governance Uncovered is brought to you by the Governance and Local Development Institute at the University of Gothenburg, and supported by the Swedish Research Council.  This policy roundtable discussion was made possible through a grant project from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. In this episode, we delved into the intricate governance, economic and security issues confronting post-As...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPTION Governance Uncovered is brought to you by the Governance and Local Development Institute at the University of Gothenburg, and supported by the Swedish Research Council. In this episode, we discuss some of the research behind the new book Decentralization, Local Governance, and Inequality in the Middle East and North Africa, edited by Kristen Kao and Ellen Lust, and supported...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPTION In this episode, we are joined by Gabrielle Kruks-Wisner to discuss her Cambridge Element, Claim-Making in Comparative Perspective: Everyday Citizenship Practice and Its Consequences , co-written with Janice Gallagher and Whitney Taylor.    Gabi and Ellen explore how everyday claim-making strategies help citizens fulfill their rights. Gabi highlights that claim-maki...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPTION This episode features interviews with Whitney Taylor , Associate Professor of Political Science at San Francisco State University, and Janice Gallagher , Associate Professor of Political Science at Rutgers University-Newark. Both have recent books on legal mobilization in Latin America. Whitney Taylor ‘s book, The Social Constitution: Embedding Social Rights Through Legal Mob...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPTION In this episode, we have Shandana Khan Mohmand joining us. She is a Research Fellow at the Institute of Development Studies , University of Sussex, and an Associate Fellow at the Institute of Development and Economic Alternatives in Pakistan.   Shandana and host Ellen Lust discuss Shandana's book, Crafty Oligarchs, Savvy Voters: Democracy under Inequality in Rural Pakist...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPTION This is a bonus episode of Governance Uncovered that is shorter than usual but just as filled with fascinating insights on local governance research.  Our guest is Hannah Early Bagdanov , a PhD candidate in Political Science at the University of Notre Dame. She is also a Doctoral Student Affiliate of the Kellogg Institute for International Studies and the Klau Center for...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT This podcast is brought to you by the Governance and Local Development Institute at the University of Gothenburg and supported by the Swedish Research Council. In today's episode, we have Prakash Bhattarai joining us. Prakash is the Executive Director at the Center for Social Change, a non-profit think-tank based in Kathmandu, Nepal, working on the changing socio-political dynam...

TRANSCRIPTION Governance Uncovered is a podcast produced by the Governance and Local Development Institute at the University of Gothenburg. This podcast is supported by the Swedish Research Council. EPISODE 59 We are happy to let you know that this is another podcast mashup, this time with the Middle East Law and Governance (MELG) podcast. MELG is a peer-reviewed journal for scholarly analysis on...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT In this episode, we focus on governance at a local level in the city where GLD is based - Gothenburg. We discuss the potential of sharing economies at the household level and the Gothenburg Proposal, an e-petition platform that enhances local democracy and citizen engagement. We also share the inspiring work of Swedish Development Partner Gothenburg, also known as "IM Gothenburg...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT In this episode, we are joined by GLD fellow Fernando Brancoli, who is an Associate Professor at the Institute for International Relations and Defense, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. He is also an Associated Researcher at the Orfalea Center for Global Studies, University of California, Santa Barbara. Fernando and host Ellen Lust discuss Fernando’s book Bolsonarismo - The...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT In this episode, we are joined by Egor Lazarev , who is an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at Yale University. Egor and host Ellen Lust discuss Egor's book  State-Building as Lawfare: Custom, Sharia, and State Law in Postwar Chechnya , which was published by Cambridge University Press in 2023. The book addresses two interrelated puzzles: why do lo...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT In the 55th episode of Governance Uncovered, we sit down with Diana Greenwald to talk about her book "Mayors in the Middle - Indirect Rule and Local Government in Occupied Palestine," which will be published by Columbia University Press in May 2024.   Host Ellen Lust and Diana start by talking about what initially made Diana interested in Palestine and local governance in t...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT This episode of Governance Uncovered focuses on the Sudanese civil war. Our first guest Munzoul Assal, Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Khartoum and the University of Bergen, gives us insight into Sudan's complex history. Then, we'll hear from Dr. Iman Ahmed, a global health specialist with a focus on migration and refugee studies. She discusses healthcare c...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT Governance Uncovered is a podcast by the Governance and Lcoal Development Institute at the University of Gothenburg. This podcast is supported by the Swedish Research Council. In this episode, we have Dalia Abdelhady , Associate Professor in Sociology at Lund University, joining us in a conversation on diasporas.  We'll discuss how events back home, whether natural disaster...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT In today's episode, we are joined by Michael Wahman , Associate Professor at Michigan State University's Department of Political Science. Host Ellen Lust and Michael discuss his book Controlling Territory, Controlling Voters , recently published by Oxford University Press. Michael's research leading up to this book, which spanned seven years, delves into the complex topic of ele...

EPISODE TRANSCRIPTION This podcast is supported by the Swedish Research Council.  In this episode, we're joined by Marika Sosnowski, a postdoctoral research fellow at Melbourne Law School. Marika and host Ellen Lust discuss Marika's new book Redefining Ceasefires: Wartime Order and State Building in Syria . The book challenges traditional notions of ceasefires and examines their effects on go...