Cleo O'Brien-Udry
LightNews LightNews
cobrienudry.bsky.social
Cleo O'Brien-Udry
@cobrienudry.bsky.social
2.1K followers 1.2K following 96 posts
International political economy, development, and climate politics | Assistant professor @UIUC | she/her

cobrienudry.github.io
Posts Replies Media Videos
cobrienudry.bsky.social
UIUC is hiring this year!! Two positions in American Political Institutions and Political Behavior!

Applications due 6:00pm (CST) on September 16, 2025 through jobs.illinois.edu.

Our department is lovely and friendly and brilliant--happy to chat about our department and the positions!
Assistant Professor in Political Behavior Department of Political Science University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Department of Political Science at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign invites applications for a full-time tenure stream Assistant Professor position in Political Behavior, broadly defined. Candidates with research and teaching interests in comparative political behavior, comparative political psychology, or race, ethnicity, and politics are particularly encouraged to apply. Successful candidates are expected to teach courses in Political Behavior at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, to establish and maintain an active and independent research program, and to provide service to the department, the university, the profession, and the people of Illinois in keeping with the university’s land-grant mission. Successful candidates should demonstrate evidence of creativity and effectiveness in teaching and scholarly research. In addition, successful candidates should demonstrate experience with fostering or the ability to foster an inclusive and collaborative teaching, learning, departmental, and research environment where all can thrive. Applicants are encouraged to include in their cover letter information about how they will further our commitment to the university’s values. Applicants at the Assistant Professor level must demonstrate evidence of a promising research agenda and a commitment to undergraduate and graduate teaching. Ph.D. in Political Science or related field required. Candidates whose PhD may be delayed but will complete all the Ph.D. requirements within the first appointment year may be appointed at the rank of Instructor. After the Ph.D. requirement is met, the appointment will be changed to Assistant Professor. Target start date is August 16, 2026. The budgeted salary range for the position is $105,000 - $110,000 at the Assistant Professor level, for a 9-month service basis. Assistant Professor in American Political Institutions Department of Political Science University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Department of Political Science at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign invites applications for a full-time tenure stream Assistant Professor position in American Political Institutions. Successful candidates are expected to teach courses in American Political Institutions at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, establish and maintain an active and independent research program, and provide service to the department, the university, and the profession. Candidates should demonstrate evidence of creativity, teaching and scholarly research effectiveness. In addition, the successful candidate will demonstrate experience with fostering or the ability to foster an inclusive and collaborative teaching, learning, departmental, and research environment where all can thrive. Applicants at the Assistant Professor level must demonstrate evidence of a promising research agenda and a commitment to undergraduate and graduate teaching. Ph.D. in Political Science or related field required. Candidates whose PhD may be delayed but will complete all the Ph.D. requirements within the first appointment year may be appointed at the rank of Instructor. After the Ph.D. requirement is met, the appointment will be changed to Assistant Professor. Target start date is August 16, 2026. The budgeted salary range for the position is $105,000 - $110,000 at the Assistant Professor level, for a 9-month service basis.
August 11, 2025 at 4:03 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
If you're in Chicago, come hang with dogs and help clean up Belmont Harbor dog beach tomorrow (Saturday, July 12) from 9-11!
Belmont Harbor Dog Beach Clean Up BYO trash bags and gloves! Will try to bring extra but who knows Come with or without your dogs! Non-dog owners welcome! Saturday, July 12 9-11am
July 11, 2025 at 8:54 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
anyone in the Chicagoland area looking to adopt a sweet, beautiful puppy named Clementine?

She's around a year old, loves people, is great with other dogs, and looking for her forever family!
Sweet brown and white puppy in a field Sweet brown and white puppy on the beach
July 4, 2025 at 2:50 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
PAWS Chicago needs foster families for kitten season!!!

Help get kittens adopted by taking them home for one to two weeks!!

www.pawschicago.org
Kitten yowling on a lap w/ laptop in background
June 18, 2025 at 5:06 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
And the actual gene-editing babies scandal also had international backlash -- we show evidence from Twitter (RIP) that people tweeted more and more angrily about the scandal
April 28, 2025 at 7:22 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
Survey experiment on American population based on He Jiankui's scandal editing in-vitro babies in China

➡️evidence of backlash for domestic scandals
➡️also backlash against US scientific support for foreign scandals!
➡️public does not discriminate between domestic and foreign research controversies
We find evidence of domestic public backlash in three of four outcomes. Relative to a baseline of reading only the introductory text, respondents who read about a hypothetical misuse of gene-editing technology by American researchers exhibit significantly less support for patient access to gene therapies (⁠⁠) and public funding for gene-editing research (⁠⁠). They also have diminished perceptions of the safety and responsibility of scientific research (⁠⁠) in the United States. On average, the domestic controversy treatment shifts opinion on each of these outcomes by approximately 0.5 points. Contrary to expectations, respondents do not increase demand for strict regulations in reaction to domestic gene-editing scandals (⁠⁠). This null finding may reflect a ceiling effect, as even respondents in the control condition call for strict regulations in high numbers (see Online Appendix Figure A4). There is clear evidence that backlash is not limited by national jurisdiction. As in the domestic scenario, neither of the foreign scandals significantly affects attitudes about gene-editing regulation. However, support for public funding of gene-editing research significantly decreases in response to foreign controversies in the United Kingdom and China (⁠⁠). Respondents also reduce confidence in the responsibility of US scientists (⁠⁠) and support for gene therapies (⁠⁠) in the China condition. The UK controversy does not affect perceptions of safety but does decrease support for gene therapies (⁠⁠). Notably, the effects of domestic and foreign controversies are statistically indistinguishable across all four outcomes.
April 28, 2025 at 7:22 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
Clinical trials and patents also shift to lower-regulation jurisdictions after CRISPR!

Placebo tests show that other fields *do not* follow the same pattern ➡️ if anything, scientists in other fields shift to *higher regulation* jurisdictions
Table A1: Placebo Test: Employment Relocation of Mental Health and Eating Disorder Researchers: Linear model estimates for the volume of mental health and eating disorder researchers who relocate to institutions in another country. Column 2 includes the following controls (not shown): GDP origin country, GDP destination country, GDP per capita ori- gin country, GDP per capita destination country, Patent Applications origin country, Patent Applications destination country, R& D origin country, and R&D destination country. Stan- dard errors are clustered by country dyad. Statistical significance is denoted by: ∗p<0.1; ∗∗p<0.05; ∗∗∗p<0.01.
April 28, 2025 at 7:22 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
We track the relocation of gene-editing scientists across universities and countries after the invention of CRISPR, a technology that revolutionized gene-editing research.

➡️a high-regulation country like Germany has lost ~31 gene-editing researchers due to forum shopping!!
Table 1 reports the results of several linear models estimating the effect of regulatory difference on scientific relocation, before and after the CRISPR breakthrough. Standard errors are clustered by country dyad. Column 1 presents a baseline model with the Regulatory Difference measure, an indicator for 2012–present (CRISPR), and the interaction term. The positive and statistically significant coefficient for the CRISPR variable indicates a higher propensity for employment relocation after 2012. This suggests that the technological shock generally increased cross-border mobility of researchers. More importantly, the interaction term Regulatory Difference CRISPR is negative and significant, indicating that restrictive jurisdictions become substantially less attractive destinations after 2012. This result is consistent with enhanced flows of researchers into more permissive jurisdictions in the wake of the CRISPR breakthrough. Columns 2 and 3 find broadly similar results after adding the full set of covariates as well as dyad fixed effects.
April 28, 2025 at 7:22 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
1. Regulatory arbitrage

➡️there exist huge differences in regulatory stringency across countries
➡️technological development shifts toward countries with less onerous regulation, potentially increasing the risk of accidents, misuse, or controversial applications.
➡️forum shopping!
Figure 2.National regulation of gene-editing technology. Thirty-nine countries are rated by the permissiveness of national gene-editing technology regulations. Ratings combine data from Isasi, Kleiderman, and Knoppers (2016), Araki and Ishii (2014), and Baylis et al. (2020). See "Regulatory Arbitrage" section for details on the coding and source data.
April 28, 2025 at 7:22 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
We argue that technological breakthroughs—sudden, disruptive innovations that dramatically transform or replace existing practices—alter the regulatory landscape for states in (at least) two meaningful ways:

1. Regulatory arbitrage

2. Public backlash spillovers
Figure 1 visualizes the two theoretical processes outlined above. The arbitrage mechanism, depicted on the left, is activated when a technological breakthrough occurs and countries diverge in how they regulate its application and development. This triggers forum shopping as research activity relocates to weakly regulated jurisdictions. On the right, the public backlash mechanism is activated when a controversy emerges over the use of the technology in a given country. We anticipate this will decrease public support for the technology in both the home jurisdiction as well as in other countries. The solid arrows in the figure indicate hypothesized causal relationships in each process which we formally test in the empirical section below.
April 28, 2025 at 7:22 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
The world is bad! Might as well read some cool work on scientific interdependence and CRISPR!

Now out in @isq-jrnl.bsky.social

Innovation and Interdependence: Evidence from Gene-Editing Technology (with Tyler Pratt)
academic.oup.com/isq/article/...

🧬⬇️
Technological breakthroughs carry great promise but often escalate economic competition and heighten public anxiety, creating new challenges for governments. We argue that breakthroughs trigger two distinct mechanisms that reshape regulatory politics: (1) accelerated incentives for regulatory arbitrage and (2) the potential for controversies to spark international public backlash. First, technological advancement generates forum-shopping behavior as private actors race to develop the new technology. Researchers and firms may seek to evade national rules by relocating to more permissive jurisdictions. Second, public unease about new technologies creates the potential for backlash in the wake of controversial applications. This backlash can spill across borders: accidents or misuse in one jurisdiction undermine support for research and commercial development elsewhere. Together, these processes link the regulatory fate of states, undermining their ability to regulate in isolation. We test and find evidence for these mechanisms in the domain of gene editing, a field that has been transformed by the introduction of CRISPR technology in 2012. Our theory and findings shed new light on the regulatory politics of breakthrough technologies.
April 28, 2025 at 7:22 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
Attention Philly folks!! SEPTA is facing MASSIVE budget cuts that will reduce or eliminate DOZENS of routes--a 45% reduction in service!!!!

Mobilize! Rally to support SEPTA at City Hall TOMORROW (4/11) at 11am (see below)

www.mobilize.us/ppt/event/77...
info graphic about timeline of service cuts info graphic about service cuts
April 10, 2025 at 6:50 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
coming to #ISA2025? drop by our roundtable on USAID funding cuts!

Monday @ 10:30 in Conference Room 4J, 4 Chicago Hilton

ft.
@naazneenbarma.bsky.social
@suparnac.bsky.social
@dadakim.bsky.social
Kelly Hunter
@hilarymatfess.bsky.social
Haley Swedlund
Mike Tierney
Matt Winters
Conference Room 4J, 4 Chicago Hilton Matthew S. Winters Chair Pending Roundtable on the U.S. Foreign Aid Crisis Naazneen Barma Participant Pending Roundtable on the U.S. Foreign Aid Crisis Suparna Chaudhry Participant Pending Roundtable on the U.S. Foreign Aid Crisis Kim Yi Dionne Participant Pending Roundtable on the U.S. Foreign Aid Crisis Kelly Hunter Participant Pending Roundtable on the U.S. Foreign Aid Crisis Hilary Matfess Participant Accepted Roundtable on the U.S. Foreign Aid Crisis Cleo O'Brien-Udry Participant Pending Roundtable on the U.S. Foreign Aid Crisis Haley J. Swedlund Participant Accepted Roundtable on the U.S. Foreign Aid Crisis Michael J. Tierney Participant Accepted Roundtable on the U.S. Foreign Aid Crisis Mary Hartford Chair Withdrawn Roundtable on the U.S. Foreign Aid Crisis
February 27, 2025 at 3:30 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
Interactive map of USAID agriculture cut impacts on farms, ports across the US storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/29fc...
Screenshot of map of farms/ports impacted by USAID shutdown
February 10, 2025 at 5:19 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
CfP: Political Economy of Aid and Development Society

Please submit full papers or extended abstracts to samuel.brazys@ucd.ie.

Deadline: 15 December 2024.
Decisions by: 15 January 2025.

When: 23-24 April 2025
Where: Atholl Palace Hotel in Pitlochry, Scotland

#ipesky #cpesky #cipesky #polisky
We invite submissions for the third annual meeting of the Political Economy of Aid and Development Society. The meeting will be hosted by Bernhard Reinsberg and Patrick Shea (University of Glasgow, International Political Economy & Development) and held 23-24 April 2025 at the Atholl Palace Hotel in Pitlochry, Scotland. The conference aims to bring together economists and political scientists to address issues of the political economy of development. Paper topics might include issues pertaining to the political economy of development assistance; issues of development and trade and/or investment; issues of bureaucratic organization from the perspective of state and non-state donor partners, host governments, and non-governmental organizations in host countries; issues of advanced/green technology commercialization and dissemination and development; or other relevant topics. Submission of Papers Both empirical and theoretical papers will be considered. Please submit full papers or extended abstracts to samuel.brazys@ucd.ie. The deadline for submission is 15 December 2024. We will make decisions by 15 January 2025. Special Issue After the conference, presenters are encouraged to submit their papers to the Journal of International Development to be considered for a special issue. Submission to the conference does not require submitting to the special issue. Conference Format, Attendance, and Registration The number of participants will be limited to roughly 30 to allow for in-depth discussion of each paper. Authors of accepted papers are expected to attend the entire conference. Thanks to generous support from UK Research & Innovation, there is no conference fee. Lunch and dinner will be provided on the days of the conference. Travel and accommodation (including breakfast) are at the expense of participants. Subject to budgetary confirmation, some support may be available, especially for early career researchers or researchers based at institutions in the Global South.
December 2, 2024 at 3:38 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
Draft syllabus for my new class on the Politics of Climate Change in Developing States--open any and all feedback!

cobrienudry.github.io/files/The%20...

thanks to @jeffcolgan.bsky.social for the Climate Solution Lab's syllabus bank
November 25, 2024 at 10:01 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
So pleased to announce the (preliminary) workshop schedule for the Supporting Women in International Political Economy conference on April 12, 2024 at Penn!

If you are interested in attending, please register here: forms.gle/oLddU2Jgdxnc...
Supporting Women in International Political Economy Preliminary Schedule Friday, April 12, 2024 Poster presenters
January 22, 2024 at 3:46 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
Two more days to submit proposals for SWIPE!

When: April 12
Where: Penn
What: Supporting Women in International Political Economy
Who: Post-PhD, pre-tenure women

Deadline: Dec 15

Apply: forms.gle/xw3CHfbP2yYo...
The one-day conference has three primary aims: 1) present innovative work on international political economy, 2) create opportunities for networking and feedback within and across levels of seniority, 3) provide space to articulate challenges (and strategies for addressing these challenges) particular to women (and non-binary) scholars working in IPE. By connecting women at different stages of their careers, the conference will help foster new connections and conversations about career advancement and opportunities in the field of IPE. The conference will feature panels of junior scholars with senior discussants, a roundtable on academic careers in IPE, and happy hour and dinner for informal conversations. Submissions: We are soliciting submissions on topics in international political economy from junior (defined as post-PhD, pre-tenure) women and non-binary scholars. Submissions may take the form of an extended abstract or full draft; preference will be given to full drafts.
December 13, 2023 at 5:31 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
I am thrilled to join University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as an Assistant Professor next fall!

I am so thankful for the help & support of so many folks: my committee (Sarah Bush, Kate Baldwin, Christina Schneider), family, friends, & a veritable army of scholars in IPE, aid, climate, & beyond.
First US experimental crop field at UIUC!
November 27, 2023 at 4:56 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
CfP: Supporting Women in International Political Economy Conference

When: April 12

Where: UPenn

What: Mentorship, feedback, solidarity!

Who: Junior women & non-binary scholars (post-PhD)

Submit full drafts by December 15: forms.gle/Waj2dejPtf3d...

Register to attend: forms.gle/oLddU2Jgdxnc...
Supporting Women in International Political Economy Conference April 12, 2024 The one-day conference has three primary aims: 1) present innovative work on international political economy, 2) create opportunities for networking and feedback within and across levels of seniority, 3) provide space to articulate challenges (and strategies for addressing these challenges) particular to women (and non-binary) scholars working in IPE. By connecting women at different stages of their careers, the conference will help foster new connections and conversations about career advancement and opportunities in the field of IPE. The conference will feature panels of junior scholars with senior discussants, a roundtable on academic careers in IPE, and happy hour and dinner for informal conversations. Submissions: We are soliciting submissions on topics in international political economy from junior (defined as post-PhD, pre-tenure) women and non-binary scholars.
November 14, 2023 at 8:53 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
get your flu shot and COVID booster!! Penn folks can get it for free today/tomorrow!

But CVS is also super easy and I highly recommend!!
November 9, 2023 at 5:20 PM
cobrienudry.bsky.social
so grateful for the opportunity to present my work on greening foreign aid at Villanova today! thank you to Christopher Kilby and the economics department for the warm welcome and excellent comments!

check out the paper here if interested: cobrienudry.github.io/files/o'brien-udry_JMP.pdf
TV monitor with photo of Cleo and text "Villanova Department of Economics Seminar Series"
September 29, 2023 at 9:22 PM