Benjamin KohlInterim Graduate Chair Associate Professor Geography and Urban Studies Temple University 339 Gladfelter Hall 1115 Polett Walk Philadelphia, PA 19122-6089
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Areas of Expertise: International development and economic policy, international urban studies, persistence of neoliberalism, political economy of development and planning, urban planning, Latin America, Andean Region, Bolivia. |
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Education: 1999 - Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning, Cornell University |
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Courses:
GUS 1025 (060) World Urban Patterns GUS 3000 Special Topics: Everyday Life in European Cities GUS 3001 Image of the City in Popular Culture GUS 4075/5075 (225/425) Geography & Urban Studies: Regional Development in the Third World |
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Research:
My research interests extend across the fields of the political economy of development, urban studies, urban theory, and research methods. Much of my work focuses on Bolivia, where I have spent over 9 of the past 25 years-- first, working in and later studying development projects before moving to broader questions of political and social change. One body of work, which examines how neoliberal restructuring in 1985 has shaped the country between 1985 and 2005, is summarized in Impasse in Bolivia: Neoliberal Hegemony and Popular Resistance, written with Linda Farthing (Zed Books, 2006). A second book, From the Mines to the Streets; The life of a Bolivian activist (2011, U Texas) tells the story of broader historical processes within the context of one person's life.
I am presently engaged in two research projects. The first, which will take me back to Bolivia, looks at the constraints to change in democratic and bureaucratic systems and, in the Bolivian case, considers the persistence of neoliberalism in “post neoliberal” states. The second project looks define the characteristics of neoliberal cities to complement the global cities framework that currently dominates international urban studies. This project will allow us to develop a framework for understanding neoliberal cities just as we have some shared (and perhaps contradictory) understanding of what we mean when we talk about global (or world) cities. |
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Publications (selected):
“Bolivia under Morales: Consolidating Power, Initiating Decolonization” Latin American Perspectives, 37(3) 5-17, with R Bresnahan 2010
“Bolivia under Morales: A work in progress” Latin American Perspectives 37(3) 107-122, 2010
“‘Less Than Fully Satisfactory Development Outcomes’: International Financial Institutions and Social Unrest in Bolivia,” Latin American Perspectives, 36(3), 59-78, with L Farthing, 2009
Minero con poder de dinamita: la vida de un activista bolivano, Editores Plural: La Paz, F Muruchi, L Farthing, and B Kohl, 2009 (pdf of book [here])
Epilogue to Impasse in Bolivia, draft of chapter for Spanish edition, Plural, La Paz, 2007
Bumeran boliviano en Economia. Bumeran boliviano Hegemonia neoliberal y resistencia social, with Linda Farthing. La Paz: Plural Editores, marzo 2007. ISBN/Código: 51345960024.
“Challenges to Neoliberal Hegemony in Bolivia,” Antipode, 38(2), 304-326, 2006
“Privatization Bolivian Style: A cautionary tale,” International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 28(4) 2004 (Spanish translation [here])
Juan Arbona and Ben Kohl, “La Paz-El Alto City Profile,” Cities, June 2004, 21(3) 255-265
“Stabilizing Neoliberalism In Bolivia: Privatization and Participation in Bolivia,” Political Geography, 21(4), 449-472, 2002 (Spanish translation [here])
"Bolivia's New Wave of Protest," NACLA, 34(5) 8-11, with Linda Farthing, 2001 |
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