Jerry Urtuzuastigui is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Political Science and recipient of the College of Arts and Sciences Dissertation Completion Fellowship at Indiana University, Bloomington. He studies international relations and political methodology and is broadly interested in economic coercion, political conflict and violence, and human rights. His current research largely focuses on the determinants of economic sanctions as well as how international sanctions are associated with armed conflict and conflict dynamics. 

Jerry's research has been published in World Development, The British Journal of Politics and International Relations, International Interactions, and the Journal of Contemporary African Studies. He is also co-author of Climate Adaptation and Conflict Mitigation: The Case of South Sudan (Cambridge University Press, under contract). He has presented his work at selective political science and international relations conferences, including the American Political Science Association, International Studies Association, and the Online Peace Science Colloquium.

Interested in building datasets that help researchers assess conflict risk and the likelihood of mass atrocities, Jerry has built - or is currently building - events-based datasets on zootonic disease outbreaks in Sub-Saharan Africa, NGO climate interventions in South Sudan and bordering countries, and caste violence and social conflict in India. He has also constructed a fine-grained UN targeted sanctions database, which includes detailed information on various types of sanctions imposed on states, rebel groups, pro-government militias, and identity-based militias . 

Along with doing academic research, Jerry enjoys teaching college-level courses and interacting with students. Jerry's teaching interests are broad and include international relations, the international politics of economic coercion, conflict studies, and research methods in political science. He has guest-lectured on economic sanctions and political violence as well as taught an undergraduate political methodology lab and a course on American political institutions.

Before entering Indiana University's PhD program, Jerry received undergraduate and graduate degrees in political science, served as an AmeriCorps volunteer, and taught in China, Singapore, Japan, and Taiwan.