3rd Social Conflict and Political Economy (SCoPE) Workshop

University of Sydney, 31 March - 1 April 2026

The workshop will take place in Seminar Room 203, R.D. Watt Building (A04), Camperdown (main) campus.

Programme

DAY 1: 31 MARCH 2026

9:30–10:00 Morning Tea

10:00–10:45 Invited Talk I

  • Political Accountability and the Returns to Peace – Joris Mueller (NUS)

10:45–11:00 Break

11:00–12:30 Session 1: Identity

  1. The Economic Costs of Xenophobia – Nixon Chekenya (Texas Tech University)
  2. Women’s Empowerment from Property to Political and Labor Rights – Yueyan Zhou (University of Auckland)
  3. Winning Stomachs and Minds: Ethnic Restaurants and Anti-Immigrant Sentiment in the US – Marco Lecci (Monash University)

12:30–1:30 Lunch

1:30–2:15 Invited Talk II

  • Subjective Divorce Risk and Intra-Household Allocation – Adeline Delavande (UTS) 2:15–2:30 Break

2:30–4:00 Session 2: Institutions

  1. Handcuffing the Grabbing Hand: Evidence from China’s Anticorruption Campaign – Quoc-Anh Do (Monash University)
  2. Raj of the Royals: Princes, Political Power, and Economic Development in India – Rohit Joseph (Ashoka University)
  3. Trading Swords for Courts: Legal Capacity and Civil Conflict – Jingyuan Guo (NUS)

4:00–4:15 Afternoon Tea

4:15–5:45 Session 3: Terrorism

  1. Mobile Internet and Terrorism: Evidence from Developing Countries – Sundar Ponnusamy (Deakin University)
  2. Terrorism and Voting: Evidence from the Death of Osama bin Laden – Chungeun Yoon (KDI School)
  3. The Naxalite Conflict in India: Does Ethnic Distance Matter – Prasad Bhattacharya (Deakin University)

6:30 – Dinner (by invitation)

DAY 2: 1 APRIL 2026

9:30–10:00 Morning Tea

10:00–10:45 Invited Talk III

  • Nativist Fertility Rhetoric and the Political Economy of Immigration: Evidence from 19th Century US – Sarah Walker (UNSW)

10:45–11:00 Break

11:00–12:30 Session 4: History

  1. Jewish Deportation in Wartime France – Pauline Grosjean (UNSW)
  2. Repression, Religion, and Regime Loyalty in Nazi Germany – Alexander De Juan (Osnabrück University)
  3. Missions Misaligned: Colonial Legacies of Social Conflict in Africa – Ashani Amarasinghe (University of Sydney)

12:30–1:30 Lunch

1:30–2:15 Invited Talk IV

  • The Political Impact of Refugees in Africa – Jean-François Maystadt (UCLouvain)

2:15–2:30 Break

2:30–4:00 Session 5: Conflict

  1. Aid, Interrupted: Conflict Dynamics Following the USAID Suspension in Africa – David Ubilava (University of Sydney)
  2. Internet Quality, Digital Disruptions, and Critical Junctions – Lukas Wellner (Monash University)
  3. Combative Identity and Intimate Partner Violence in Sub-Saharan Africa – Ha Nguyen (Curtin University)

4:00–4:15 Afternoon Tea

4:15–5:45 Session 6: Information

  1. Scaling Conflict Research: Ordinal Coding of Escalation Using Large Language Models – Sascha Nanlohy (Institute for Economics and Peace)
  2. Mapping Violence Perceptions through YouTube Comments: A New Approach to Real-Time Violence Monitoring – Francesco Bailo (University of Sydney)
  3. Public Preferences for Economic Reforms Are Shaped More by Design Than Cost – Christopher Hoy (University of Melbourne)

Registration

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Organizers

David Ubilava, Ashani Amarasinghe, Justin Hastings, and Andrey Vasnev

Acknowledgement

The workshop organizers gratefully acknowledge support from the School of Economics at the University of Sydney and the Australian Research Council.