Sarah Blodgett Bermeo

Sarah Bermeo is a political economist and associate professor of public policy and political science in the Sanford School at Duke University and Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) in the Master of International Development Policy (MIDP) program. Her research lies at the intersection of international relations and development, with a particular focus on relations between industrialized and developing countries. She has published multiple articles on foreign aid, with additional work examining trade agreements and migration. Her book, Targeted Development: Industrialized Country Strategy in a Globalizing World (Oxford, 2018) demonstrates that the desire to limit negative spillovers associated with underdevelopment leads industrialized states to allocate foreign aid, trade agreements, and climate finance across developing countries in a development-oriented, but also self-interested, manner. Her work has appeared in International Organization, Journal of Politics, and World Development. Her article, “Aid is Not Oil,” received the 2016 Robert O. Keohane Award from International Organization.