Igor Logvinenko teaches and writes about the intricacies of global political economy, delving into subjects such as energy geopolitics, corruption and international finance, and the nature of authoritarianism.
Dr. Igor Logvinenko is an Associate Professor of Diplomacy & World Affairs and a faculty affiliate of the John Parke Young Initiative on the Global Political Economy at Occidental College. He is also the Faculty Director of the Undegraduate Research Center.
His current book project explores why some countries rapidly adopt solar energy while others stall, arguing that factors like development finance coalitions, regional integration, and incumbent industry resistance matter far more than regime type or market orientation. Through cases spanning Uzbekistan, Kenya, Croatia, Mexico, and others, the book traces Chinese-manufactured panels from factory to deployment, revealing the hidden political economy that determines winners and losers in the global solar revolution.
Professor Logvinenko is co-editor (w/ Michael Dichio) of Global Perspectives on Judicial Politics and Democratic Backsliding (Law & Policy, 2024-25) - a special issue featuring ten articles by fifteen scholars examining how courts worldwide both enable and resist democratic backsliding, with case studies from the United States, Europe, Southeast Asia, and Latin America.
Dr. Logvinenko's first book, Global Finance, Local Control: Corruption and Wealth in Contemporary Russia (Cornell UP 2021), explored how money and power shaped Russia's integration into the global financial system between 1989 and 2020. It was named the co-winner of the 2023 Best Book Award given by the International Political Economy section of the International Studies Association.
His research has been published in academic journals, including Communist and Post-Communist Studies, Democratization, European Journal of Politics and Gender, Europe-Asia Studies, Law & Policy, Review of International Political Economy, and Russian Politics. His commentary has appeared in the Washington Post, National Interest, Just Security, and other public-facing outlets.
Before joining the faculty at Occidental College in 2020, Professor Logvinenko held appointments and affiliations at Wellesley College, the Monterey Institute for International Studies, the Harriman Institute at Columbia University, the Davis Center at Harvard University, and the Cornell-in-Washington Program. He is a native of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
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