Catlan Reardon

Catlan Reardon is the inaugural Einstein-Moos Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law (CDDRL) at Stanford University. Reardon is also a non-resident research associate at the Center on the Politics of Development. Her research lies at the intersection of elite political behavior, violence, and the political economy of development, with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa. More broadly, Reardon researches local responses to violence, climate volatility, and governance challenges in developing countries. She has conducted field work in India, Uganda, Kenya, and Nigeria and have consulted on projects with USAID, DAI, and Mercy Corps and employs experimental, quasi-experimental, and qualitative methods in my research.

Reardon received her PhD in political science at the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to graduate school, Reardon worked for Innovations for Poverty Action in Uganda and Kenya for over three years managing studies on micro-savings, health and governance, and technology diffusion. Reardon was also a research manager at the Institution for Social and Policy Studies at Yale University. She holds an MA in political science from Leiden University and a BA in political science from Wake Forest University. 

King Center Supported Research

2022 - 2023 Academic Year | Global Development Research Funding

Examining the Effect of Climate Shocks and Migratory Shifts on Violence in Nigeria

Climate change, technological shifts, population growth, and soil degradation are transforming social relations across Africa. The pressures induced by these transformations have, in many instances, led to increased violence and conflict. In West Africa, where land and water are increasingly scarce resources, communal violence has increased steadily over the last decade, threatening the livelihoods and security of vulnerable populations. Much of this violence can be attributed to clashes between pastoralists and indigenous farming groups. According to ACLED, farmer-herder violence has resulted in over 15,000 deaths, half of which has occurred since 2018. In this study, Reardon will investigate two questions in the context of North-Central Nigeria. First, Reardon will examine the extent to which climate-induced shifts in migratory patterns of pastoralists affect violence and local development in North-Central Nigeria. Second, Reardon will explore the potential moderators of these climate shocks.