معرفی
Camilo Nieto-Matiz serves as Assistant Professor of Political Science and Geography in the College of Liberal and Fine Arts at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). He maintains a research affiliate position at Notre Dame’s Kellogg Institute Violence and Transitional Justice Lab, following prior postdoctoral work at Tulane University’s Center for Inter-American Policy and Research.
His academic credentials include:
- Ph.D. in Political Science, University of Notre Dame (2020)
- M.A. in Political Science, University of Notre Dame (2016)
- M.A. in Public Policy and Conflict Studies, Universität Erfurt, Germany (2013)
- B.A. in Political Science, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Colombia (2009)
Nieto-Matiz investigates political and criminal violence dynamics through the lens of state capacity, examining how elites manipulate institutions amid rural inequality and conflict. His research reveals critical patterns: land-based coalitions deliberately weaken taxation systems during civil wars, while programmatic parties reduce violence compared to clientelistic alternatives. Current projects analyze mining-related violence and transitional justice perceptions in new democracies, with methodological rigor combining statistical causal inference and qualitative fieldwork across Latin America.
His publication trajectory in Comparative Political Studies, Journal of Conflict Resolution, and World Development demonstrates consistent focus on subnational violence mechanisms, institutional erosion, and resource conflict in Colombia, Brazil, and Guatemala. Recent work establishes causal links between paramilitary governance and property tax collapse, while 2024 research exposes state coercion against anti-mining movements.
Award recognition:
- Harry Frank Guggenheim Emerging Scholars Award (2019)
Nieto-Matiz teaches graduate courses on Civil Wars and Global Development while contributing to Notre Dame’s Violence and Transitional Justice Lab, which develops frameworks for post-conflict accountability in settings like Guatemala’s CICIG prosecutions.
