8400 Baltimore Ave., Suite 250, College Park, MD 20740
On Thursday, September 22 from 3:00 - 4:00 pm at START headquarters, START Senior Researcher Barnett Koven will give a lecture on his dissertation research, which examines under what conditions development assistance reduces or exacerbates insurgent violence both where it is implemented and in geographically proximate areas. The event is free and open to the public, but RSVPs are appreciated.
In addition to his work at START, Barnett S. Koven is an Affiliated Scholar at the Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy at Florida International University. Koven is currently completing his Ph.D. in political science at the George Washington University, where he previously received a M.Phil. and a M.A. in Political Science and a B.A. in International Affairs and Latin American and Hemispheric Studies. Koven also holds a Certificates in Conflict Analysis from the United States Institute for Peace and Advanced Security in the Field from the United Nations System Staff College.
His dissertation examines under what conditions development assistance reduces or exacerbates insurgent violence both where it is implemented and in geographically proximate areas. This research, which has involved extensive archival investigation, practitioner interviews, fieldwork, and the construction of original quantitative datasets, covers Iraq, Afghanistan, Peru, and Colombia. This inquiry, including over a year of overseas fieldwork was funded by two grants from The Horowitz Foundation for Social Policy and a third from the George Washington University. In addition to his dissertation research, Koven also works on other issues pertaining to counterinsurgency, counter-narcotics, security cooperation, weapons availability and conflict onset, post-conflict reconstruction, and the material and non-material sources of military power. A complete list of publications can be found on his website: barnettkoven.weebly.com.
Koven is also the Co-founder and Chair of The Village Energy Project, a non-profit facilitating the use anaerobic digestion (waste-to-energy) processes for rural electrification in the developing world. He is the Vice President and Events Director at the Godparents of the Children of Instituto Mundo Libre, a non-profit providing housing, rehabilitation, and vocational training to homeless children in Peru. Finally, Koven is an advisor at Concordia, a non-profit platform for expanding public-private partnerships.