about me

I am an Assistant Professor at the Vancouver School of Economics at the University of British Columbia.

Previously, I was a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Princeton University (RPDE). I have a PhD from UC Berkeley and a BA from Universidad de los Andes (Colombia).

My research interests are in political economy, development economics and behavioral economics.

working papers

Hate, Fear and Intergroup Conflict: Experimental Evidence from Nigeria
(R&R Quarterly Journal of Economics)
• Winner of the Weiss Family Distinguished Paper at NEUDC 2023
• Covered in: VoxDev, Marginal Revolution

publications

Monopoly of Taxation Without a Monopoly of Violence: The Weak State’s Trade-Offs from Taxation
with Soeren Henn, Mastaki Mugaruka, Raul S. dela Sierra and David Q. Wu
(Review of Economic Studies, 2024)

work in progress

Fear Traps: Persistent Avoidance Despite Incentives to Explore
with Eunice Atajiri (writing stage)

Business Practices from Foreign Cultures: The Effects of Chinese and American Trainings on Ethiopian Workers
with Shibiru Ayalew and David Q. Wu (main experiment ongoing)

Seeing the State: Elite Exposure to Public Goods and the Fiscal Contract
with Chris Blattman and Jose A. Guerra (main experiment ongoing)

Costly Punishment in the Real World: Evidence from Labor Courts
with Chris Blattman, Enrique Seira and Joyce Sadka (pilot ongoing)