BREAD Working Paper No. 588, May 2021

Transhumant Pastoralism, Climate Change, and Conflict in Africa Eoin F. McGuirk and Nathan Nunn Abstract We consider the effects of climate change on seasonally migrant populations that herd livestock — i.e., transhumant pastoralists — in Africa. Traditionally, transhumant pastoralists benefit from a cooperative relationship with sedentary agriculturalists whereby arable land is used for crop farming […]

BREAD Working Paper No. 520, July 2017

First and Second Generation Impacts of the Biafran War Richard Akresh, Sonia Bhalotra, Marinella Leone, Una Osili Abstract We analyze long-term impacts of the 1967-1970 Nigerian Civil War, providing the first evidence of intergenerational impacts. Women exposed to the war in their grow- ing years exhibit reduced adult stature, increased likelihood of being overweight, earlier […]

BREAD Working Paper No. 527, November 2017

The Long-run Effects of Agricultural Productivity on Conflict, 1400-1900 Murat Iyigun, Nathan Nunn, Nancy Qian Abstract This paper provides evidence of the long-run effects of a permanent increase in agricultural productivity on conflict. We construct a newly digitized and geo-referenced dataset of battles in Europe, the Near East and North Africa covering the period be- […]

BREAD Working Paper No. 531, May 2018

The Political Boundaries of Ethnic Divisions Samuel Bazzi, Matthew Gudgeon Abstract This paper argues that redrawing subnational political boundaries can transform ethnic divisions. We use a natural policy experiment in Indonesia to show how the effects of ethnic diversity on conflict depend on the political units within which groups are organized. Redistricting along group lines […]

BREAD Working Paper No. 538, January 2018

Social Structure and Conflict: Evidence from Sub-Saharan Africa Jacob Moscona, Nathan Nunn, James A. Robinson Abstract We test the long-standing hypothesis that ethnic groups that are organized around ‘segmentary lineages’ are more prone to conflict and civil war. Ethnographic accounts suggest that in segmen- tary lineage societies, which are characterized by strong allegiances to distant relatives, […]

BREAD Working Paper No. 564, June 2019

Leader Identity and Coordination Sonia Bhalotra, Irma Clots-Figueras, Lakshmi Iyer, Joseph Vecci Abstract This paper examines policy effectiveness as a function of leader identity. We experimentally vary leader religious identity in a coordination game implemented in India, and focus upon citizen reactions to leader identity, controlling for leader actions. We find that minority leaders improve […]

BREAD Working Paper No. 576, December 2020

Country of Women? Repercussions of the Triple Alliance War in Paraguay Jennifer Alix-Garcia, Laura Schechter, Felipe Valencia Caicedo, S. Jessica Zhu Abstract Skewed sex ratios often result from episodes of conflict, disease, and migration. Their persistent impacts over a century later, and especially in less-developed regions, remain less understood. The War of the Triple Alliance […]