Jeffrey Lesser

Jeffrey Lesser is the Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor of History at Emory University. He specializes in modern Latin American history, particularly Brazil, focusing on health, ethnicity, immigration, and race. His work examines how social and material structures influence daily life and health outcomes, with recent projects analyzing patient-professional interactions and urban health environments.

Education:

• BA in History, Brown University, 1982
• MA in History, Brown University, 1984
• PhD in History, New York University, 1989

Research Interests: Lesser's research integrates oral histories, archival materials, and spatial data. His books include *Living and Dying in São Paulo* (2025), *Immigration, Ethnicity and National Identity in Brazil* (2013), and *A Discontented Diaspora* (2007). He explores topics like health disparities, ethnic identity formation, and transnationalism, often through collaborative digital projects like Pauliceia 2.0.

Awards:

• 2010 Roberto Reis Prize (Honorable Mention)
• Best Book Prize, Latin American Studies Association
• Best Book Prize, New England Council on Latin American Studies

Teaching and Advising: Lesser advises multiple PhD students and has mentored graduates now at institutions like the University of Michigan and the University of Texas. His courses incorporate digital and oral history methodologies.

Administrative Roles: At Emory, he served as Director of the Halle Institute for Global Research, Chair of the History Department, and Director of the Latin American and Caribbean Studies Program. He co-edits scholarly series with Cambridge and University of New Mexico Press.

Key Projects: Pauliceia 2.0, a collaborative mapping platform for São Paulo’s urban history, and research on Zika’s social geography in Brazil. His Mellon Foundation-supported work ensures open-access editions of his books.