Ford Foundation Grant Awarded to MMC for Macroeconomic Policy and Human Rights Project

Marymount Manhattan College has been awarded a $130,000 grant from the Ford Foundation to support a project titled “Integrating Macroeconomic Strategies and Economic and Social Rights” led by faculty member Radhika Balakrishnan. Along with project teams and advisory groups, Balakrishnan, professor of International Studies and Economics at MMC, will examine aspects of macroeconomic policy in the U.S. and Mexico and evaluate them in light of human rights principles.

The Ford grant will provide for an additional member for each project team in Mexico and the U.S. It will also support a needs assessment, which will be conducted to consider developing a handbook to train civil society organizations in various countries. Further, it will fund advisory group meetings, events and participation in conferences in the U.S., Mexico, and other international venues, to gather information and present findings.

The project will examine the interaction between progressive economists and human rights activists, leading to cutting-edge research on macroeconomic policy and human rights. The analysis will target a wide audience, especially policy makers, non-governmental organizations and civil society and help identify how to bring about fundamental improvements in economic, social and cultural rights, especially for those who need it most.

The results of the project’s research will be compiled into published material, which will be circulated and electronically distributed in several formats to reach different audiences. A policy report will be published in English and Spanish and shared with policy makers at the international and national level.

Over the past several years, the generosity of the Ford Foundation has allowed Balakrishnan to pursue important studies on the intersection of human rights and progressive macroeconomics. In 2004, she received a grant from the Ford Foundation’s programs in Human Rights and Governance. She completed a report titled, “Why MES with Human Rights: Integrating Macro Economic Strategies with Human Rights,” which has been widely distributed throughout the United States and Mexico. In June 2006, the Fundar Center for Analysis and Research received a two-year grant from the Ford Foundation, Mexico. In October 2006, MMC received a one-year grant from the Ford Foundation’s Women’s Rights program in New York.

Published: September 11, 2007