Pedro Luz de Castro

I am a Ph.D. candidate in political science at the University of Michigan. I study the political economy of development, with a focus on state formation, political authority and territorial governance in Latin America. My research asks when rulers can convert territorial control into effective power over economic activity. My current work examines how criminal governance reshapes local markets and enables fiscal extraction in Rio de Janeiro. My work combines original data collection, spatial analysis and causal inference.

I hold an M.A. in Applied Economics from the University of Michigan and law degrees from the University of Brasília.

You can reach me at pldc@umich.edu.