Elizabeth A. Bennett

Elizabeth A. Bennett, PhD, is a Full Professor of International Affairs (with tenure) and Director of Political Economy at Lewis & Clark College, Portland, Oregon. She holds visiting roles at the Goldman School of Public Policy, University of California – Berkeley, and will be a Senior Fellow at the Forum Basiliense, University of Basel (Switzerland) in 2025. Her work focuses on labor exploitation in globalized supply chains, voluntary sustainability standards, and equitable business models.

• Education: PhD in Political Science, Brown University (2014); MALD in Political Economy and Development, The Fletcher School at Tufts University (2014)

Her research spans international relations, political economy, public policy, and sustainable development. Recent projects examine living wages in global supply chains and ethical consumerism in the cannabis industry. She co-edited The Handbook of Research on Fair Trade (2015) with Laura T. Raynolds.

Her 2024 articles explore value chain profit-sharing, voluntary sustainability standards, and fair trade principles in cannabis. Earlier works analyze global governance, labor rights, and civic engagement. She has received fellowships from Harvard, Rutgers, and the J. Robert Beyster Foundation.

• Scientific Awards: J. Robert Beyster Fellowship (2022), Harvard Kennedy School Fellow, ongoing Rutgers Institute Fellow

Dr. Bennett engages public policy through advisory roles with the United Nations Forum on Sustainability Standards, Global Organic Textile Standards Committee, and think tanks like IDOS. Her research is featured in The Guardian, PBS Nova, and The Oregonian.