Research Library

Nonresident scholar Elizabeth Salamanca provides an overview of the main types of visas obtained by highly skilled migrants, and how each visa category could potentially change under the Trump administration.

The elections that will be held in Cuba on April 19 undoubtedly represents the most important election since 1979 — for the first time in nearly 60 years, someone from outside the Castro family will lead the country. Although the change at the top of the Cuban regime may not constitute a radical change in the political system, the symbolic significance of a post-Castro era cannot be overstated, write the authors in a new post for the Baker Institute Blog.

Rice faculty scholar Leslie Schwindt-Bayer shares key findings from a recently published book she edited, “Gender and Representation in Latin America," which examines the factors that help increase women’s political presence in Latin American governments.

Fellow Francisco J. Monaldi examines the factors that led to the collapse of Venezuela’s oil industry and the impact of sanctions against the country.

The outlook for the Venezuelan oil industry and the broader economic and political challenges facing the country are intrinsically linked. This report summarizes possible political and economic scenarios, as well as potential next steps for the country, discussed during a workshop convened by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy.

The economic and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela took a turn for the worse in the second half of 2017. Declines in oil production and exports are accelerating. The government has fallen behind in debt payments, past the grace period in several cases. This report summarizes some key takeaways from an expert workshop convened by Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy to appraise these alarming developments.

Cultural myths — and by extension, the suppositions they inspire — have played a major role in shaping Venezuela's relationship with and management of oil resources throughout much of the last 100 years, writes nonresident fellow Luis Pacheco. To achieve sustainable economic and social development, Venezuela must move beyond such beliefs and establish a new approach that is more attuned to current times.

The author assesses the impact of inequality in Latin America and the methods used to measure it. 

View fellow Francisco Monaldi's assessment of the road ahead for Venezuela, a country rich in oil and gas that President Nicolás Maduro has led into economic dysfunction and crisis. Monaldi's comments in English are followed by the interview in Spanish.