Jose is a PhD researcher at the Institute of Development Studies and collaborates on a range of ESRC and FCDO funded projects with the Business, Markets, and States cluster at IDS, as well as with other independent research projects.

He is interested in finding alternative roads to economic development that lead to more egalitarian, pro-poor, and sustainable outcomes in emerging economies. He is currently co-researcher on an independent project looking at Leontief multiplier effects as a potential source of “bottom-up” economic development. Furthermore, he works with Dr. Anabel Marin looking at how natural resource sectors can be used as a platform for structural change and sustainable development in Latin America.

Jose is also interested in how Latin American countries can navigate the green transition and use it as a platform for economic and ecological transformation. Following this broad question, his PhD project is looking at the co-evolution of industrial and institutional capabilities to innovate in the cement industry in Mexico. In particular, he is looking at Cemex, one of the most technologically advanced cement manufacturers in the world and one of the first to introduce low-carbon cement into the global market. Through this project, Jose hopes to begin unpacking the firm-level and institutional capabilities available and necessary for low-carbon innovations in Mexico, as well as the historical process of learning, interaction, and (mis)alignment that the accumulation of these capabilities entail.

Jose is a Postgraduate Researcher being supervised by Anabel Marin and Phil Mader.