The second event in our event series exploring the intersection of economics and Catholic Social Thought is here. This Friday, Sandra Polania Reyes (University of Navarra) will give a talk titled “The Catholic Approach to Extractives in Colombia: Pastoral Accompaniment Using an Eco Theology of Peace” (abstract, paper and more here). If you want to attend, please send an e-mail to Andy Yuengert at andrew.yuengert@pepperdine.edu. And of course, if you have a paper you want to present, do get in touch with Andy. There are still dates available for this series.
More about the speaker
In order to get to know better the speaker, we sent some questions to her. Here are the answers.
Q1. Sandra, can you briefly discuss your professional career and how you became involved in the project that you describe in the paper?
I am a behavioral development economist working at the intersection of experimental economics and prosocial behavior. My research focuses on the design and evaluation of effective behavioral policy interventions in developing countries. I have conducted large-scale laboratory economic experiments in the field to study the role of prosocial behavior in overcoming collective action problems and promoting the common good.
I am passionate about topics that are key for economic development and just recently have been explored in the field: social integration, leadership, collective action, and extractive industries. There are macro-level studies of extractives and conflict but no micro evidence. As with the case of internal displacement due to the conflict and the Venezuelan refugee crisis, the Catholic Church’s work with the communities that are directly affected by extractives stands out. I started conversations with Caritas in 2016, and four years later we were able to run the study.
Q2. The project you describe was done for the Colombian Conference of Catholic Bishops. If you were advising the Colombian government, what would be your two main recommendations?
Extractives in Colombia are unstoppable. Half of the communities directly affected by extractives reject this economic activity. This resistance is led mostly by civic leaders and local organizations. In order to avoid violent conflict and reduce the negative impacts of extractives, the government must show transparency with license allocation, stop assigning licenses in protected areas, and force extractives to effectively engage all stakeholders.
Q3. Could you give interested CREDO economists two or three references of papers or books which treat the problems at the intersection of social justice and extractive industries?
This article is part of an initiative on how Catholic peacebuilding addresses the global mining industry. The book will be published on Nov. 30. In addition, I strongly recommend the resource list gathered by the Catholic Peacebuilding Network, a voluntary network of practitioners and academics, clergy, and laity, which seeks to enhance the study and practice of Catholic peacebuilding in areas torn by conflict.
