(Re)Industrialization in resource poor countriesIn collaboration with Dr Regine Spector (Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of Massachusetts-Amherst), I have developed a project on the (re)industrialization process in resource poor countries. Specifically, through the case of the apparel sector in Kyrgyzstan, our research investigates how re-industrialization process was possible in Central Asia despite the absence conventional “engines” of development such as Foreign Direct Investment, or state-led development. Three major aspects of the apparel sector that we have focused on, include: 1) meanings of work and success among small and medium enterprise owners, 2) urban geography of sewing shops and the impact of shops' location on owner-state relations, 3) entrepreneurial subjectivities among shop owners.
Our work on the apparel industry in Bishkek has resulted in a peer-reviewed article published in Central Asian Survey. Currently, we are extending our work and co-authoring a follow-up article, where we explain the spatial organization of value-chain inequalities in the apparel industry. |
Religious Practice and PietyIn another collaborative project, I have together with Dr Pauline Jones Luong (Professor of Political Science, University of Michigan) launched a pilot project on “Developing Contextual Measures of Religiosity: Perceptions of Piety among Muslims in Central Asia."
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