LIST OF WORKSHOPS

The field of public policy has experienced significant growth and has attracted considerable scholarly attention. Within this discipline, various theories have emerged with the aim of comprehensively understanding and elucidating the complex process of public decision-making. The analysis of this subject matter entails an examination of the social construct, necessitating a comprehension of its construction and the specific dynamics of the state-society relationship within a certain sector. Various methods of experiencing, observing, and researching the nature of reality give rise to diverse theoretical and methodological views aimed at providing explanations. The availability of diverse analytical techniques for examining public policies has contributed to the exploration of alternative paradigms and theoretical frameworks that address the wide-ranging elements encompassed within the policy process. These elements include individuals, institutions, ideas, discourses and narratives, governance, and levels of action. The discussed concepts have originated from the global north, and their applicability to other locations has demonstrated their limitations in analyzing divergent realities characterized by "hybrid cultures" (Canclini, 1987).

Latin American reality is characterized by a weak level of development in the discipline. This progress is hindered by several factors. Firstly, the historical heritage, the challenge posed by language barriers when engaging in multilevel debates. This language barrier also extends to the educational level, impeding access to recent studies, which are predominantly in English, as well as the cost associated with accessing a large number of publications. While this situation may have resulted in a dearth of theoretical underpinnings, analytical frameworks, concepts, and methodologies tailored to the Latin American context, it has nonetheless shaped a modus operandi characterized by a combination of diverse perspectives and the utilization of "distinct" public policy experiences that could contribute to discussions at the national, regional, and international levels.

In light of this scenario, it is crucial to acknowledge the significance of comprehending both the empirical knowledge that can be derived from specific cases within the region and the current situation of the development of the theories of policy process (Sabatier & Weible, 2014) in Latin America to understand how to advance and improve from these two dimensions.

From the theories of the policy process dimension,  this proposition aims to assess how we are using mainstream theories, what they bring to us, whether they need to be adjusted to the context. Second, from the critical and interpretative approaches, highlighting their differential contributions compared to mainstream approaches. Third, we want to highlight homegrown contributions, whether at the level of theories or concepts or key contextual factors for understanding the realities of the Region. We are particularly interested in how our own contributions dialogue with the approaches of the global North. Then the following questions are suggested: What characteristics distinguish policy analysis in the region? What is the current situation of policy process theory development? How are their comprehended and utilized? What concrete contributions have been made to the study of Latin American public policies?. Such insights can greatly contribute to the ongoing discourse around the examination of public policies and further enrich our comprehension of the prevailing theories pertaining to the policy process both at the regional and worldwide levels. 

From the empirical dimension, this panel seeks to promote a regional debate on public policy by highlighting the region's unique characteristics and contributions to policy-making. Thus, it encourages papers that discuss policy contributions to problem-solving with a specific case, such as cash transfers programs, participatory budget initiatives, bus rapid transit programs, metropolitan governance, infant industry development policies, and anti-corruption policies, among others. Additionally, it encourages propositions to debate empirical insights into issues from the theories of policy process when they apply to examine Latin American cases. These topics should serve only as an indication of the type of discussion the panel intends to prompt.

Theoretical and factual knowledge are vital to policy studies; indeed, public policies are defined from these two theoretical and empirical perspectives. In this regard, Engeli and Rothmayr (2014) stress, for example, that "the field of public policy analysis comprises broadly two different, related, and equally valuable scholarly enterprises: to provide knowledge and policy expertise in and for policymaking [...] and to develop general theories and frameworks of the policy process explaining and predicting the policy-making process" (p. 2). Fontaine (2015), from the Latin American level, states that "public policy analysis has a scientific function (to improve knowledge) and a political function (to improve action and decision-making)." (p. 6).

The objective is to begin a long-lasting discussion about policy studies in LA in order to recognize more fully and transparently what the region has offered and how the field can proliferate in our region. As part of the objective, the panel will attempt to seek and arrive at an editorial project.

Studies and students of public policy have proliferated around the globe. Arguably, the field of research may have reached a point where regional contributions are now part of the mainstream of studies. Despite the richness in scope and breadth of the studies about public policy, further ways to push the knowledge frontiers of this field are still to be explored. Then, this panel aims to promote a regional debate in public policy, looking for the particularities and contributions of this region to public policy analyses.

This panel invites authors to engage with the question about the Latin American regional contribution to the field. As in many other fields of knowledge, authors in the region may have offered key developments, either on the grounds of theory, methodology, or even further, in terms of an innovative epistemological approach. However, such voices may have been eclipsed or overseen somehow due to a recurrent centralization of knowledge production, placing greater emphasis on authors and ideas that are able to publish in the US and Europe. 

The panel offers a unique opportunity to discuss the region's advancements and contributions to the study of public policy. Papers with the following topics are welcome: 

·         Well-established contributions that were allegedly developed first in LA or by an author in the region, alluding to cases of LA

·         Specific policies in LA that have been regarded as worldwide valuable ideas or international contributions (ex. participatory budgets, cash-transfer programs, bus rapid transport,

·         Applications of theories of the policy process (country or in a comparative way) in the LA context that have raised questions, prompted revisions, or placed key critiques on the mainstream approaches within the policy studies. Or in other words: What are the specific theoretical contributions from the Latin America? How do they contrast with Global North theories? What insights do they provide about the policy processes? How do they represent the development countries particularities?

·         How have “mainstream” or “alternatives” theories of the Global North been applied, and what have we learned about the theories and the region?

·         Methodological innovations in the field that have been initiated in LA may be part of the peculiar features that researchers face in the region (or due to some other reason).

·         Specific features of and within policies in LA that have been shaped by the political regime, culture, or other socio-political traits available in the region.

This panel seeks to promote a regional debate on public policy by highlighting the region's unique characteristics and contributions to public policy analyses. Thus, it encourages papers that discuss policy contributions to problem-solving with a specific case, such as cash transfers programs, participatory budget initiatives, bus rapid transit programs, metropolitan governance, infant industry development policies, and anti-corruption policies, among others. Additionally, it encourages propositions to debate empirical insights into issues from the theories of policy process when they apply to examine Latin American cases.

The previous topics should serve only as an indication of the type of discussion the panel intends to prompt. The objective is to begin a long-lasting discussion about policy studies in LA in order to recognize more fully and transparently what the region has offered and how the field can proliferate in our region. As part of the objective, the panel will attempt to seek and arrive at an editorial project.

This panel invites authors to engage with the question about the Latin American regional contribution to the field. As in many other fields of knowledge, authors in the region may have offered key developments to the field, either on the grounds of theory, methodology, or even further, in terms of an innovative epistemological approach. However, such voices may have been eclipsed or overseen somehow due to a recurrent centralization of knowledge production, placing greater emphasis on authors and ideas that are able to publish in the US and Europe. 

The panel offers a unique opportunity to discuss the region's advancements and contributions to the study of public policy. Papers with the following topics are welcome: 

·                     Well-established contributions that were allegedly developed first in LA or by an author in the region, alluding to cases of LA

·                     Specific policies in LA that have been regarded as worldwide valuable ideas or international contributions (ex. participatory budgets, cash-transfer programs, bus rapid transport,

·                     Applications of theories of the policy process (country or in a comparative way) in the LA context that have raised questions, prompted revisions, or placed key critiques on the mainstream approaches within the policy studies. Or in other words: What are the specific theoretical contributions from the Latin America? How do they contrast with Global North theories? What insights do they provide about the policy processes? How do they represent the development countries particularities?

·                     How have “mainstream” or “alternatives” theories of the Global North been applied, and what have we learned about the theories and the region?

·                     Methodological innovations in the field that have been initiated in LA may be part of the peculiar features that researchers face in the region (or due to some other reason).

·                     Specific features of and within policies in LA that have been shaped by the political regime, culture, or other socio-political traits available in the region

This panel seeks to promote a regional debate on public policy by highlighting the region's unique characteristics and contributions to public policy analyses from empirical and theoretical views. Thus, it encourages papers that discuss policy contributions to problem-solving with a specific case, such as cash transfers programs, participatory budget initiatives, bus rapid transit programs, metropolitan governance, infant industry development policies, and anti-corruption policies, among others. In addition, it encourages the formulation of hypotheses to assess the applicability of policy process theories to Latin American cases. The previous topics should serve only as an indication of the type of discussion the panel intends to prompt. The objective is to begin a long-lasting discussion about policy studies in LA in order to recognize more fully and transparently what the region has offered and how the field can proliferate in our region. As part of the objective, the panel will attempt to seek and arrive at an editorial project.

Norma Muñoz del Campo

Associate Professor in the Department of Public Policy, Universidad de Santiago. Specialized in public policy analysis. My lines of research have been developed based on the intersection of cognitive and institutional approaches in order to study the reforms that have taken place in Chile since the transition to democracy to date. I am also interested in current debates on teaching-learning processes and their application to the teaching of public policy. My work has been published in Latin American Policy, Teaching Public Administration, Cahiers des Amériques Latines; Estado Gobierno y Gestión Pública; Cambridge Scholars Publishing; Routledge; Edward Elgar Publishing.

Juan Guillermo Vieira Silva.

Assistant professor of government and public policy at the Universidad EAFIT, Medellín, Colombia. PhD in Political Studies and International Relations, and Master in Comparative Public Policy. His main academic interests are: policy process research, applied policy analysis, policy theory, and political institutions (presidency and congress). He is currently creating the Colombian Political Agendas Project (COL-PAP), which is the Colombian chapter of the Comparative Agendas Project. His most recent publication is García-Tejeda & Vieira-Silva (2023) “La diversidad de las agendas políticas locales durante la covid-19: una comparación de los estados mexicanos” in Íconos. Revista de Ciencias Sociales.

Melina Rocha

Course Director in the Political Science Program at York University – Glendon Campus. She obtained her doctorate in political science at Université Paris 3 – Sorbonne Nouvelle in 2013. Her thesis ‘La crise de la fiscalité au Brésil (1988-2010) : un changement de paradigme inachevé’, under the supervision by Prof. Yves Surel, was published by L’Harmattan editions in 2017. She worked as an associate professor in the Law School at Fundação Getulio Vargas (2011–2018), Visiting Scholar at the University of Toronto (2017–2018) and short-term consultant at the World Bank (2019). Her areas of research are taxation and fiscal policy, federalism and comparative public policies.