Social Sciences News

GEOGRAPHY - For Graduate-Professional Student Appreciation Week in 2026, CAS gradate students share their experiences of what makes their experience special at CAS. CAS is home to 1,295 graduate students: 307 master’s and 959 PhD. With April 6-10 Graduate-Professional Student Appreciation Week, CAS reached out to some of its graduate students to hear how about their experiences at the college.

ECONOMICS — A new conflict in the Middle East is driving questions about what it will do gas prices in the US. College of Arts and Sciences Associate Professor of Economics Keaton Miller explains why the two are so closely tied and what to worry about — or not — in the future.

ECONOMICS - How can the US solve gun violence? That’s the question that Jens Ludwig asked when he wrote his 2025 book “Unforgiving Places: The Unexpected Origins of American Gun Violence.” Ludwig brings his insight as an economist and how research can inform policymaking to the University of Oregon Eugene campus on Thursday, April 9, from 3:30-4:15 p.m. at Lillis 282.

HISTORY - Annelise Heinz, the author of "Mahjong: A Chinese Game and the Making of Modern American Culture," says there is something satisfying about “the way that the tiles look and sound and feel”. (The same is true of a game like dominoes.) “In this very digital world”, she argues, the tactile nature of mahjong offers “analogue pleasures”.

ASIAN STUDIES, JAPANESE — What makes Japanese popular culture so fascinating? How are cute characters like Hello Kitty — arguably the most recognized icon in the world — and games like Pokémon — the world’s highest grossing franchise — transforming global politics and the ways people construct their own identities? These are some of the questions students explore in ASIA 399: Japanese Popular Culture and the World.

HISTORY - Micah Jones joined the College of Arts and Sciences as a history assistant professor in fall 2025. Jones is a historian specializing in Black studies, Southern history, and gender history.

ECONOMICS - What happen to jobs, wages, and opportunity as AI transforms the labor market? Join leading economist Betsey Stevenson for a conversation on research, policy, and what today's students should know about tomorrow's workforce. The event is 3-3:50 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26 in Lawrence 177.

ANTHROPOLOGY - The January roundup of Department of Anthropology news digs into book awards, graduate student accomplishments and research publication.

ANTHROPOLOGY - CHC and College of Arts and Sciences senior Bella Albiani studies the link between homelessness and food insecurity. The work to understand one of society’s most intractable issues has no end, but that’s what compels Albiani to stay with it.

LATINX STUDIES — On Oct.13, the Museum of Natural and Cultural History gave free admission for Indigenous Peoples’ Day and showcased the exhibit, “Transgressors,” which had been up since May 16, to highlight and honor Indigenous and Queer identities.

INDIGENOUS, RACE AND ETHNIC STUDIES - On Jan. 13, 2026, Ernesto Javier Martínez was awarded the two-year $150,000 Fields Fellowship from the Oregon Community Foundation in partnership with Oregon Humanities. The fellowship supports Oregon artists who use creativity and cultural expressions to address communities, such as Martínez's film stories that tell the experiences of queer Latinx youth and the immigrant experience in the US.

ANTHROPOLOGY - As a College of Arts and Sciences doctoral student, Theresa Gildner conducted research that led to publications and experience in conducting ethical field research. She continues the work she did at CAS as a faculty member at Washington University, whether she’s working on the Shuar Project or studying low-income regions of the southern US.

ANTHROPOLOGY - The December roundup for the Department of Anthropology features new publications from faculty, grant award announcements, media appearances — and more.

POLITICAL SCIENCE - Longtime professor Daniel Goldrich died Dec. 21, 2025. Goldrich joined the UO faculty in 1963. He focused on Latin and Central American politics and Pacific Northwest energy politics. Rarely did a day pass without a former student stopping him to say how profoundly his teaching had shaped them. In 1997, Dan received the Herman Faculty Award for excellence in teaching. Goldrich helped found organizations in Eugene that have since grown to be fixtures of the community.

SOCIOLOGY - New research by sociology Associate Professor Claire Herbert and doctoral student Amanda Ricketts examined three US case studies where squatting was used as a tool to influence local and state decision makers. The two CAS sociologists published their findings in the article “Resisting and Reclaiming: Squatting as Contentious Urban Politics in the US” n the November 2025 issue of Social Problems.