Faculty
Introduction
Faculty members in the Department of Economics have a wide variety of research interests and are engaged in cutting-edge theoretical advances and policy development in Canada, as well as other countries. Members of the Department of Economics have received research grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the International Development Research Centre, Human Resources Development Canada, Status of Women Canada, and BC Centre of Excellence for Women’s Health. Faculty members have also provided consulting services to the Asian Development Bank, World Bank, and Northern Health.
Faculty Biographies
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Adjunct Professor PhD - University of British Columbia MA - Simon Fraser University BA - Queen's University I am a Research Economist with the Canadian Forest Service, Natural Resources Canada and specializes in forest management and forest sector development issues. Prior to my current position, I was a senior policy advisor on international climate change policy at Environment Canada. I have lectured at the University of British Columbia, University of Tasmania, and the University of Uruguay and held fellowships at Harvard University's Institute for International Development and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agricultural. My current work is focused on: economics of salvage harvesting after natural disturbances; demand for wood products derived from dead pine; demand for certified wood and paper products; the midterm outlook for the Canadian pulp and paper sector; and, non-tariff barriers to trade in forest products. |
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Professor PhD - London School of Economics MA - University of Sussex BSc - University of Southampton I am currently working on a number of research projects. The first concerns how China manages its currency, the renminbi. The exchange rate regime has become a little more flexible but the reasons why China persists with this regime have perplexed scholars. In this project, with Baotai Wang and Greg Chin, we adopt a political approach to examine China's policies. We are also looking into the future and considering the implications of our analysis for renmibi internationalization and the future of the present US dollar dominated international monetary system. The second, also funded by SSHRC, examines how northern BC is globalizing. The region has long been integrated into world markets but, in the current period, this is marked by a greater role for Asia and in the context of neoliberal domestic policy. A multidisciplinary group is examining the implications of this for governance, the economy, and First Nations. A third project is looking at the rise of fringe financial institutions, such as payday loan lenders, and analysing why individuals use them. I am also preparing a new version of my book on Capitalism.
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Associate Professor PhD - University of Sydney BA, MA & MPhil - University of Kerala My current research interests include rural credit markets in developing countries and the role of microfinance in alleviating poverty and providing livelihood finance for the poor.In the area of microfinance, my research interests include dynamics of high repayment rates in microfinance industry, social capital and microfinance, financing of microfinance especially the role of commercial microfinance, corporate social responsibility, cost and economies of scale/scope in the microfinance industry, and corporate governance issues. One graduate student has completed his masters thesis in this area under my supervision and another student is about to submit his thesis. Three more students enrolled in the M.A. in Development Economics program at UNBC have started their preliminary work in this area. I have completed two primary surveys on corporate governance practices among microfinance institutions in Bangladesh (along with a graduate student) and India (independently) and am in the process of data analysis and report writing. The field visits has fostered collaboration with a few research institutions in Bangladesh and India and is expected to foster field visits by our students to these countries. I have also conducted a primary survey of financing of traditional (non-mechanized) fishermen in a developing country (India). This study looks at the tenure system (production system) in fisheries in India and the role of various formal and informal (including money lenders) lenders in the financing of fisheries. |
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Assistant Professor PhD - HEC Montréal MSc - Université de Montréal BSc - Université de Tunis II My teaching and research relate mainly to the subjects of Environment, Forestry, Benefit-Cost Analysis and Microeconomics. My current research projects cover three different domains and comprise topics such as international emission permits trading under the Kyoto Protocol, international intelligence cooperation, and price competition and store competition. All three areas of research share the same methodology (optimal control and/or game theory) as common factor. My publications relate to global environmental issues such as international environmental agreements and tropical deforestation and include articles that appeared in international leading journals such as Automatica, The Manchester School and Environmental Modelling and Assessment as well as in local and more applied journals such as BC Journal of Ecosystems and Management. |
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Professor PhD - Dalhousie University MA - University of Guelph MA - University of Sussex My research focuses upon labour, inequality, economic security and gender equality in Canada and in Asia. My work examines the intersections of paid and unpaid work and has a strong policy orientation. I bring this perspective into the classroom and, in my teaching, I value the exploration of how different theories and paradigms illuminate various angles of economic issues. Recent research projects include internal migration and the impacts on the left-behind population in rural China, regulation of temporary foreign workers in Canada. I am engaged in a new comparative project of labour markets in the Philippines, Cambodia, and Kazakhstan. In a new project, I am working with a multidisciplinary team at UNBC to examine how northern British Columbia is globalizing. |
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Associate Professor PhD - University of Manitoba BA, MA - University of Shiraz My research areas are mostly related to sociopolitical and economic determinants of health and health inequality. I have examined and continue to examine such determinants at local, national, and international levels. My research has reinforced my interest in issues of freedom, social justice, social policy and a fair distribution of societal resources that empowers people to realize their potential for development and improve their well-being. I view determinants of health to be the same as determinants of economic development and human well-being. As such, I think of health both as an essential prerequisite for development and as a desired outcome of development. |
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Associate Professor PhD - Dalhousie University MA - University of Windsor BA - Renmin University I am also an adjunct professor at Hebei University, China. Prior to my current position, I taught at the University of Saskatchewan and the University of New Brunswick. My recent research focuses on three projects: one is a joint research project (with Dr. Paul Bowles and Dr. Gregory Chin) "Political Economy of China’s Currency Choice" funded by SSHRC; one is "The Impact of Globalization on Income Inequality and Poverty in Both Developed and Developing Countries”; and another one is “The Impact of Financial Market Development on GDP Growth”. Some of my research has been published in refereed journals such as Economic Modeling, Empirical Economics, Statistica, Review of International Political Economy, Indian Economic Journal, Social Indicators Research, The ICFAI Journal of Applied Economics, etc, or as book chapters. I have supervised graduate students in the programs of MA Economic Development; MA International Studies and Economics, MBA, and MSc in Business. I am also the research co-supervisor of a PhD student in China. |
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