Patricia Martinez Coral, 2017-2018 President Néstor Kirchner Fellow, successfully completed her two week stay in New York

The New School · New York

Within the framework of the President Néstor Kirchner (PNK) Fellowship sponsored by the Observatory on Latin America (OLA) and the Universidad Nacional de San Martín (UNSAM) in Argentina, Patricia Martinez Coral, from Colombia, successfully completed a two-week academic exchange at The New School in New York.

Patricia Martinez Coral holds a PHD in in Political Studies as well as an MA in Public Policy from Universidad Externado de Colombia. Her research focuses on the digital gap in Colombia’s rural communities. She analyzes how institutional design and technological bias add to the conditions of exclusion in Colombia.

Seminars with The New School Community

On February 28, 2018 Patricia presented her work during a closed-door seminar to receive detailed feedback on her ongoing research, but also to introduce her topic from a new perspective. The seminar was attended by New School Professors Nidhi Srinivas, Christopher London, Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, Michael Cohen, and Margarita Gutman. They were joined by Masters and PhD students from the programs in Economics, Public and Urban Policy, and International Affairs.

During the seminar Patricia highlighted her work and research on digital exclusion in rural communities in Colombia. She explained her theoretical framework and analyzed the path dependency in the design, implementation, and effects of distribution policies between 1995 and 2015. She argued that as a result of the Universal Access policy, in terms of coverage, quality, and affordability, the digital divide in rural towns has worsened.

Interviews and Visits in New York

Patricia spent most of her time meeting with experts in the fields of sociology, anthropology, media studies, and urban public policy. She held individual meetings with New School Professors Nidhi Srinivas, Maya Wiley, Shannon Mattern, Katherine Moriwaki, Peter Lucas, Claire Potter, Samiel Lavigne, Margarita Gutman, and Michael Cohen. She met with Professor Olivier Sylvain from Fordham University, Clayton Banks from Silicon Harlem, Tim Kambler from OATS, and Josh Breitbart from the Mayor’s Office. She held individual meetings with PhD students Christina Handal Gonzalez and Paola Siclari as well as with a former GPIA Master’s student, Oscar Romero.

Public Lecture

The culmination of her visit was her presentation during the Public Lecture, New Citizenship Rights in Latin America, which took place on March 8, 2018 at The New School. She was introduced by Margarita Gutman, Director of the OLA. Mary Watson, Executive Dean of NSPE at the New School moderated the discussion. For more information about the public lecture, the presentation and comments click here.

+ Watch the video of the Public Lecture

+ What is it like to be a President Néstor Kirchner Fellow?, by Patricia Martinez Coral

+ View/download Patricia Martinez Coral’s Working Paper (coming soon)

+ Slideshow Presentation by Patricia Martinez Coral (2.66 MB)