Menu

Search

Manuel Pastor

Manuel Pastor

Distinguished Professor of Sociology and American Studies & Ethnicity, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
Dr. Manuel Pastor is a Distinguished Professor of Sociology and American Studies & Ethnicity at the University of Southern California. He currently directs the Equity Research Institute at USC. Pastor holds an economics Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and is the inaugural holder of the Turpanjian Chair in Civil Society and Social Change at USC.

Pastor’s research has generally focused on issues of the economic, environmental and social conditions facing low-income urban communities – and the social movements seeking to change those realities. His forthcoming book, Charging Forward: Lithium Valley, Electric Vehicles, and a Just Future (co-authored with Chris Benner), delves into the pivotal role of California’s Lithium Valley in the “lithium gold rush” and its broader implications for climate challenges, justice, and democracy. In 2021, he published two new books, Solidarity Economics: Why Mutuality and Movements Matter (co-authored with Chris Benner) and South Central Dreams: Finding Home and Building Community in South L.A. (co-authored with Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo). His previous 2018 book, State of Resistance: What California’s Dizzying Descent and Remarkable Resurgence Means for America’s Future was lauded in a New York Times review as “concise, clear and convincing.”

Pastor’s previous book, Equity, Growth, and Community: What the Nation Can Learn from America’s Metro Areas, co-authored with Chris Benner (UC Press 2015), argues how inequality stunts economic growth and how bringing together equity and growth requires concerted local action. Combining data, case studies, and narratives on multi-sector collaborations in 11 metro regions, the book offers a powerful prescription not just for metros but for our national challenges of slow job growth, rising economic inequality, and sharp political polarization. He also co-edited the book, Unsettled Americans: Metropolitan Context and Civic Leadership for Immigrant Integration with John Mollenkopf (Cornell University Press 2016), which offers a comparative study and detailed analyses of immigrant incorporation efforts across seven different U.S. metro regions.

His previous volumes include: Just Growth: Inclusion and Prosperity in America’s Metropolitan Regions, co-authored with Chris Benner (Routledge 2012), advances the idea that growth and equity can and should be linked, offering a new path for a U.S. economy seeking to recover from economic crisis and distributional distress; Uncommon Common Ground: Race and America’s Future (W.W. Norton 2010; co-authored with Angela Glover Blackwell and Stewart Kwoh), documents the gap between progress in racial attitudes and racial realities and offers a new set of strategies for both talking about race and achieving racial equity; This Could Be the Start of Something Big: How Social Movements for Regional Equity are Transforming Metropolitan America (Cornell University Press 2009; co-authored with Chris Benner and Martha Matsuoka) highlights a promising set of organizing efforts across the U.S.; Staircases or Treadmills: Labor Market Intermediaries and Economic Opportunity in a Changing Economy (Russell Sage 2007, co-authored with Chris Benner and Laura Leete) which offers a critique of current employment strategies and argues for a new “high road” approach to connecting demand and supply in labor markets; and Regions That Work: How Cities and Suburbs Can Grow Together (University of Minnesota Press 2000; co-authored with Peter Dreier, Eugene Grigsby, and Marta Lopez-Garza), a book that has become a standard reference for those seeking to link neighborhoods and regions.

Pastor was the founding director of the Center for Justice, Tolerance, and Community at the University of California, Santa Cruz. He was also the Director at the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE) and the USC Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration (CSII). He has received fellowships from the Danforth, Guggenheim, and Kellogg foundations, and grants from the Irvine Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the National Science Foundation, the Hewlett Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, the California Environmental Protection Agency, the W.T. Grant Foundation, The California Endowment, the California Air Resources Board, and many others. Pastor speaks frequently on issues of demographic change, economic inequality, and community empowerment and has contributed opinion pieces to such outlets including the Los Angeles Times, the San Jose Mercury News, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Sacramento Bee, and The Hill, among many others.

In January 2002, he was awarded a Civic Entrepreneur of the Year award from the California Center for Regional Leadership. He has previously served as a Public Member of the Strategic Growth Council in California, as a member of the Commission on Regions appointed by California’s Speaker of the State Assembly, and as a member of the Regional Targets Advisory Committee for the California Air Resources Board. Pastor received the Liberty Hill Foundation’s Wally Marks Changemaker of the Year award for social justice research partnerships in 2012. He received the Champion for Equity Award from the Advancement Project in 2017 for his work with community-based organizations fighting for social change. In 2022, Pastor was elected to the American Academy for the Arts and Sciences for his work in Public Affairs and Public Policy. In recognition of his impactful work, in 2024, Pastor was named by the Los Angeles Times as one of the region’s most significant civic leaders in their inaugural series, L.A. Influential.

Big lithium plans for Imperial Valley, one of California’s poorest regions, raise a bigger question: Who should benefit?

Sep 29, 2024 10:23 am UTC| Technology Business

Imperial County consistently ranks among the most economically distressed places in California. Its Salton Sea, the states biggest and most toxic lake, is an environmental disaster. And the regions politics have been...

1 

Economy

Australia's Job Market Soars: November Sees Record Job Growth

Australias employment data for November 2024 shows a strong performance in the job market, with several important highlights: Job Creation:In November, 35,600 more people found jobs, which is a big increase compared to...

FxWirePro- Major economic events for the day

Date Time (UTC) Currency Indicator Actual Forecast Previous Thu, Dec...

Tesla Head Autopilot HW Jumps to Amazon’s Zoox, Shaking up Self-Driving Ambitions

Zheng Gao, who led Teslas Autopilot HW engineering for eight years, has joined Amazons Zoox. His departure comes as Tesla pushes promises of hands-free driving, while Zoox expands robotaxi testing in California, signaling...

Javier Milei’s Tax Revolution: Argentine President Eliminates 90% of Taxes in Unprecedented Economic Shake-Up

Argentine President Javier Milei has announced an audacious tax reform plan, aimed at eliminating 90% of the nations taxes. This bold move, introduced during a televised address on Monday, seeks to overhaul Argentinas...

US Tariffs Targeting Eurozone Imports May Slash Growth by 0.43%, UBS Warns

The US imposition of a 10% tariff on Eurozone imports could shrink growth by as much as 0.43%, UBS economists report. The decline depends on Europes response, with retaliation increasing inflationary pressures while...

Politics

How will Donald Trump address the gender pay gap in 2025?

In a bold move, President-elect Donald Trump unveiled his administrations strategy for tackling the gender pay gap during a speech in Washington, D.C., this week. Emphasizing economic growth and workforce equality, Trump...

What are Donald Trump’s plans for modernizing cybersecurity laws in 2025?

As cyberattacks grow more sophisticated, President-elect Donald Trump has unveiled an ambitious agenda to overhaul the United States cybersecurity laws in 2025. Trump announced his plan during a cybersecurity summit in...

How will Donald Trump support small-town economies in 2025?

President-elect Donald Trump has announced an ambitious plan to boost small-town economies across the United States in 2025. Titled the Small-Town Prosperity Initiative, the proposal emphasizes investment in...

What are Donald Trump’s policies on alternative medicine research in 2025?

President-elect Donald Trump has unveiled a controversial policy agenda prioritizing research into alternative medicine, sparking heated debates across the political and scientific landscapes. The 2025 initiative,...

Science

Some black holes at the centers of galaxies have a buddy − but detecting these binary pairs isn’t easy

Every galaxy has a supermassive black hole at its center, much like every egg has a yolk. But sometimes, hens lay eggs with two yolks. In a similar way, astrophysicists like us who study supermassive black holes expect to...

Astronomers have pinpointed the origin of mysterious repeating radio bursts from space

Slowly repeating bursts of intense radio waves from space have puzzled astronomers since they were discovered in 2022. In new research, we have for the first time tracked one of these pulsating signals back to its...

How is Donald Trump prioritizing funding for cancer research in 2025?

President-elect Donald Trump has announced a major initiative to prioritize funding for cancer research in 2025, pledging billions in federal support to combat one of the worlds leading causes of death. The plan includes...

How will Donald Trump address renewable energy research funding in 2025?

President-elect Donald Trump has revealed plans to reshape the U.S. renewable energy landscape in 2025, sparking debates about the administrations commitment to combating climate change. While Trumps previous term focused...

Tiny laboratories that fit in your hand can rapidly identify pathogens using electricity

When you think of electric fields, you likely think of electricity the stuff that makes modern life possible by powering everything from household appliances to cellphones. Researchers have been studying the principles of...

Technology

Xiaomi YU7 Delayed Until 2025 in China: What’s Holding Back This Electric Crossover?

The Xiaomi YU7 electric crossover will debut in China by mid-2025, as Xiaomi focuses on critical testing and ramping up production capacity at its new factory. Xiaomi YU7 to Enter Chinese Market in Mid-2025 The YU7...

OpenAI CFO: Trump Driving a World-Shaping AI Era, Musk Fuels Intensifying Tech Rivalry

OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar predicts President-elect Donald Trump will guide a new generation of AI, as Elon Musks competitive push intensifies. With ChatGPT usage soaring and the video tool Sora emerging, OpenAI cautiously...

Google Bets Big on AI to Redefine Search and Revolutionize Healthcare With Bold $50B Investment

Googles parent company Alphabet is transforming the future with AI. From enhancing search to pioneering medical breakthroughs like AlphaFold, the tech giant is committing $50 billion to reshape industries while balancing...

OpenAI, Microsoft AI Cloud Pact Under Fire: Google Presses FTC to Unravel Exclusive Grip on Future Tech

Google is urging the FTC to break Microsofts exclusive OpenAI AI cloud arrangement, citing antitrust concerns and intensifying industry scrutiny. As regulators probe Microsofts market practices, rivals seek a fair chance...
  • Market Data
Close

Welcome to EconoTimes

Sign up for daily updates for the most important
stories unfolding in the global economy.