Research Library

The mix of good short-term prospects for oil revenues along with long-term market uncertainties has a clear policy implication for oil-dependent Latin American economies: use the larger short-term revenues to diversify their economies, nonresident fellow José Antonio Ocampo writes in a new issue brief.

Lebanon faces significant developmental challenges, including insufficient electricity supply, environmental degradation and staggering inequality, yet the government has not invested in these areas despite substantial economic growth in recent decades. This student brief uses agenda-setting theory to argue that Lebanon’s disappointing record of development is reflected in the narrow political agenda of the government. This brief is part of a two-year project on pluralism and inclusion in the Middle East post-Arab Spring. The project is generously supported by a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

The revival of domestic production of urea (i.e., nitrogen fertilizer) in Mexico could become one of the key elements to delivering food sovereignty, one of President-elect Andrés Manuel López Obrador major campaign promises, postdoctoral fellow Adrian Duhalt writes in this issue brief.

Mexico’s electoral authorities made several poor decisions in the two most recent election cycles. This brief examines these decisions in light of the continued fragility of Mexico's political institutions, and it argues that all rulings are pivotal for the credibility of future elections and the consolidation of Mexico’s democracy.

In its primacy over trade matters under the U.S. Constitution, Congress has broad authority over new and existing trade agreements and could seek to block a "modernized" NAFTA that excludes Canada.  Whether Congress has the political will or the votes to do so remains to be seen.

Corruption is a complex social, political and institutional problem that is difficult to define. This brief describes the challenges involved in defining, understanding and measuring corruption and evaluates the case study of Mexico, where corruption has increased in recent years, to illustrate these complexities.

Mexico Center director Tony Payan weighs in on what President Trump calls "maybe the greatest trade deal ever" between the U.S. and Mexico.

Nonresident scholar Elizabeth Salamanca provides an overview of the main types of visas obtained by highly skilled migrants, and how each visa category could potentially change under the Trump administration.

Rice faculty scholar Leslie Schwindt-Bayer shares key findings from a recently published book she edited, “Gender and Representation in Latin America," which examines the factors that help increase women’s political presence in Latin American governments.

Mexico’s Ministry of the Interior estimates there could be 430,000 to 600,000 children and youth who are U.S. citizens but now reside in Mexico. Without the necessary documents, they become a vulnerable population without proper access to schools or social and health services. This brief explores the issues related to this population and calls for more research to be done to understand its impact.