Overview

UC Berkeley was among the first universities in the nation to develop a specialized interdisciplinary program of training and research in Latin American Studies with the initiation of the interdisciplinary PhD program in the early 1930s. Today, Berkeley's programs in Latin American Studies span a wide range of departments in the social sciences, humanities, and the natural sciences as well as the professional schools of Natural Resources, Public Health, Public Policy, Social Welfare, Journalism, Law, Education, and Environmental Design.

The Graduate Group in Latin American Studies draws together faculty from approximately 30 different departments. Faculty is responsible for the design, modification, and implementation of the program, for admissions and for academic advising. The Graduate Group in Latin American Studies and the Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) share an executive committee, composed of faculty from various departments; the group provides guidance both for the interdisciplinary degree programs and CLAS. As an interdisciplinary program, the Graduate Group in Latin American Studies is connected to and involved with a variety of units on the Berkeley campus.

The group is administered by the International and Area Studies Academic Program (IAS) which provides an interdisciplinary approach to the study of international and global issues. Comprised of six undergraduate majors  and three graduate degree programs, IAS is a unique intellectual domain. At a historical moment of unprecedented interconnections, IAS trains students in the knowledge and skills that are fundamental components of global citizenship and practice. IAS has strategically adopted an interdisciplinary approach to such training, with the belief that no single discipline can prepare students in the depth and breadth necessary for a complex and reflexive understanding of world history and contemporary globalization. Accordingly, IAS offers interdisciplinary core courses in fields such as Political Economy, Development Studies, and Peace and Conflict Studies and then incorporates courses offered through many other departments, offering students a rigorous but flexible curriculum which recognizes that learning takes place both inside and outside the classroom.

Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS)

The Center for Latin American Studies , located at 2334 Bowditch Street, was established in 1956 to promote, coordinate, and exchange the findings of research on Latin America by campus faculty and students. It facilitates the work of more than 100 faculty with Latin American expertise and promotes research and training on the region across the University. CLAS also serves as a home base on the campus for graduate students in Latin American Studies by providing campus mailboxes, bulletin boards for information, and a place to meet other students in seminars and social events. The center sponsors numerous seminars and other events on the campus, and it has a conference room and office space for a few visiting researchers.

Undergraduate Programs

Latin American Studies : BA

Graduate Program

Latin American Studies : MA

Visit Group Website

Courses

Latin American Studies

Faculty and Instructors

+ Indicates this faculty member is the recipient of the Distinguished Teaching Award.

Faculty

Miguel A. Altieri, Professor. Environmental Science, Policy and Management, agriculture, environmental science, pest management.

Margaret Chowning, Professor. Mexico, history, gender, women, Latin America.

Beverly Kay Crawford, Adjunct Professor. International and Area Studies, Political Economy Group Major.

Alain De Janvry, Professor. Agricultural & Resource Economics, economics, labor management and policy.

J. Bradford Delong, Professor. Economics, globalization, economic growth, convergence, economics of post WWII Europe.

+ Munis D. Faruqui, Associate Professor. Mughal India, Delhi Sultanate, Islam in South Asia/India, Urdu.

Emily Gottreich, Associate Adjunct Professor. Middle Eastern Studies, Islamic Urban Studies, Jewish history, Morocco, North Africa, Sephardic Studies.

Fatmir Haskaj, Lecturer. Political economy, development, critical theory and urban studies.

Khalid Kadir, Lecturer. Global Poverty & Practice Minor, International & Area Studies.

Erin Murphy-Graham, Associate Adjunct Professor. Educational equity, cultural studies, gender equity, diversity, international education, alternative schooling, democratic education, ethnic issues.

Lanchih Po, Associate Adjunct Professor. International and Area Studies, East Asian Languages and Cultures.

Elisabeth Sadoulet, Professor. Economics, agriculture, labor management & policy.

Clare Talwalker, Lecturer. Qualitative methods, global poverty action, human rights, South Asia and economic anthropology.

Khatharya Um, Associate Professor. Education, memory, Southeast Asian Studies, Asian American histories and communities, Southeast Asian diaspora, refugees, international migration, transnational and diaspora studies, genocide studies.
Research Profile

+ Michael J. Watts, Professor. Islam, development, Africa, social movements, political economy, political ecology, geography, South Asia, peasant societies, social and and cultural theory, US agriculture, Marxian political economy.

John Zysman, Professor. Political science, comparative politics, finance, political economy, manufacturing, European and Japanese policy, corporate strategy, Western European politics, post-industrial economy, governments, the politics of industrial change.

Lecturers

Stephanie Ballenger, Lecturer. International and Area Studies.

Peter Bartu, Lecturer. International and Area Studies, Peace and Conflict Studies, Middle Eastern Studies.

David Beecher, Lecturer. International and Area Studies, Political Economy.

Karenjot Bhangoo Randhawa, Lecturer. International and Area Studies, Peace and Conflict Studies.

Crystal Chang, Lecturer. International and Area Studies, Asian Studies, Political Science.

Jack Davey, Lecturer. International and Area Studies.

Alan Karras, Associate Director, Senior Lecturer. International and Area Studies, Political Economy.

Cecilia Cissell Lucas, Lecturer. International and Area Studies.

Mario Muzzi, Lecturer. International and Area Studies.

Bruce Newsome, Lecturer. International and Area Studies.

Clara I. Nicholls, Lecturer. International and Area Studies, Latin American Studies.

Tetsushi Ogata, Lecturer. International and Area Studies, Peace and Conflict Studies.

Tiffany L. Page, Lecturer. International and Area Studies, Latin American Studies.

Sarah Anne Reynolds, Lecturer. International and Area Studies.

Manuela Travaglianti, Lecturer. International and Area Studies, Peace and Conflict Studies.

Keiko Yamanaka, Lecturer. Department of Ethnic Studies, Asian Studies.

Darren C. Zook, Lecturer. International and Area Studies, Political Science.

Daniel Zoughbie, Lecturer. International and Area Studies.

Visiting Faculty

Laura Nathan, Visiting Professor. International and Area Studies.

Emeritus Faculty

Gillian P. Hart, Professor Emerita. Geography.