PovGov — Poverty, Violence and Governance Lab

Our mission

Action-oriented research to contain violence.

The Poverty, Violence, and Governance Lab generates scientific knowledge, anchored in state-of-the-art methodology and multidisciplinary work, to restore peace, security, and protect human rights in Latin America and beyond.

Based at Stanford University's Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law, PovGov partners with governments, civil society organizations, and affected communities to generate scientific knowledge for lasting change.

Of continuous field research across Latin America since 2010.

Peer-reviewed publications, white papers and policy briefs.

Countries of field research, from the U.S. and Mexico to Colombia, Brazil and beyond.

Field Presence · Latin America

A region under study,
and under pressure.

Nineteen publications and seven active research sites across Latin America and the US. Click any marker or title to open the project dossier.

9 active · 16 projects

Fig. 01 · PovGov field sites, 2012 – present.

Active research Completed research

Research Projects

Evidence from the field, built to be used.

Projects

Criminal Governance · Policing · Migration · Youth · Gender

Sixteen years of field research across Latin America — from Rio de Janeiro to Oaxaca, Zapopan and beyond.

Browse all projects →

Impact & results

Recognition and reach

2024 · Boris Mints Institute Prize

Director Beatriz Magaloni awarded the BMI Prize.

Recognizing her work on authoritarianism and its return as a global challenge. Previous BMI laureates include Robert Axelrod, Nobel laureate Michael Kremer, and Jeffrey D. Sachs.

2023 · Falling Walls Science Breakthrough

Finalist for Falling Walls Science Breakthrough of the Year 2023.

Beatriz Magaloni selected as a finalist for Breaking the Wall of Police Brutality, recognizing her work identifying the factors that cause brutal policing practices in democratic societies and institutional solutions to protect human rights.

2023 · Stockholm Prize in Criminology

International recognition for innovative research.

PovGov's research on police professionalization — introducing peaceful policing of favelas and organizational incentives to reduce homicides — received international recognition.

Guestworker Migration Initiative

One of the first RCTs of the H-2A program.

Evidence on the impact of guestworker migration between Mexico and the United States — on workers, their communities of origin, and the communities where they work.

Collaborators