Director

Director: Allen Hicken

Contact:

Center for Southeast Asian Studies
1080 S. University, Ste. 3603
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1106
Phone: 734.764.0352
Fax: 734.936.0996
Email: ahicken@umich.edu

Department of Political Science
7642 Haven Hall
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1045
Phone: 734.615.9105

Biography:

Professor Hicken studies political institutions and political economy in developing countries. His primary focus has been on political parties and party systems in developing democracies and their role in policymaking. His regional specialty is Southeast Asia where he has worked in Thailand, the Philippines and Cambodia.

Associate Director: Gavin Shatkin

Contact:
Center for Southeast Asian Studies
1080 S. University, Ste. 3603
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1106
Phone: 734.764.0352
Fax: 734.936.0996
Email: shatkin@umich.edu

School of Architecture and Urban Planning
2150 Art and Architecture Building
2000 Bonisteel Boulevard
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2069
Phone: 734.764.1300

Biography:

Gavin Shatkin's research focuses on three closely related phenomena, all of which relate to the social, economic, and physical transformations associated with the globalization of cities:

• Emerging issues of shelter and basic infrastructure provision in urban regions, particularly in developing countries;
• The growing role of non-governmental and community-based organizations (NGOs and CBOs) in addressing these issues and in mediating between communities and government in the community development process;
• And changes in urban governance fostered by two contradictory forces faced by governments--pressures to integrate into the global economy by facilitating investment and creating a macroeconomic climate conducive to growth, and pressures for greater accountability and commitment to equity in public policy from grassroots organizations.

His recent research projects have examined the role CBOs in shelter delivery in the Philippines, and changing models of local leadership in Thailand. He is currently beginning a comparative study of issues of inequality in the rapidly globalizing metropolitan regions of Bangkok and Metro Manila.