Introduction: 2004-2005 Annual Report

The Kellogg Institute was established in 1982 as an international studies center with a focus on Latin America, reflecting both the region’s importance to the United States and Notre Dame’s longstanding ties there. Today, the Institute builds upon its reputation as a pre-eminent center of social science research on Latin America, but it also fosters research on many regions of the world.

Around the globe, the issues challenging democracy—economic justice, the rule of law, and social equity—face unprecedented challenges, while the path toward solutions remains elusive, demanding greater study on the part of scholars, policymakers, and students. In Latin America—the focus of much Kellogg Institute research—these issues are particularly pressing. During the 2004–05 academic year, the Institute once again focused much of its attention on promoting understanding of the social, economic, and political conditions affecting democracy, assessing policy options, and conducting research that illuminates the debate.

Highlights of the year include former Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo offering insights on economic policy in Latin America; a capoeira master giving lessons on the cunning art of the Brazilian martial art; guest lecturers speaking on everything from war in Uganda to indigenous movements in Peru; 116 Notre Dame students traveling abroad to experience, prepare for, and help build a better future for our world; and a longtime Guatemalan activist, Helen Mack Chang, garnering national and international attention for her work to bring reconciliation to the still-painful wounds of the country’s civil war.

Beyond the notable and newsworthy, the Kellogg Institute continued its long tradition of challenging the University community to ask difficult questions, while nurturing research into their potential solutions.