Lindsay Mayka

Lindsay Mayka is an Associate Professor of Government and Chair of Latin American Studies at Colby College. She holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from UC Berkeley and has published extensively on participatory institutions and institutional design in Latin America.

• Ph.D. in Political Science, UC Berkeley
• M.P.P. in Public Policy, UC Berkeley
• B.A. in Political Science, Carleton College

Her research focuses on:

• Origins of participatory institutions in Latin America
• Politics of institutional weakness and reform
• Citizen engagement in policymaking
• Human rights frames in urban security
• Right-wing grassroots movements in Latin America

Key article trends include:

• Comparative analysis of participatory mechanisms
• Role of institutional design in policy outcomes
• Intersection of civil society and state reform
• Urban governance in the Global South
• Democratic backsliding and resilience

Scientific awards include:

• Clarence Stone Scholar Award (2020)
• LASA Subnational Politics Best Paper Award (2020)
• Annotation for Transparent Inquiry Challenge (2018)
• LASA/Oxfam Diskin Dissertation Award (2013)

Lindsay advises numerous undergraduate thesis students and has received multiple Social Science Division grants at Colby College. She serves on editorial committees and academic panels, including for Comparative Politics and APSA Urban and Local Politics Section.