Michael Touchton is an associate professor and the Global Health Associate Faculty Lead at the University of Miami. He studies the political economy of development and underdevelopment in a comparative setting. His areas of interest include how countries attract investment and promote economic growth, how they reduce poverty and promote human development, and how they redevelop following the departure of major industries. Much of his research occurs in Latin America, but Dr. Touchton has spent considerable time addressing these questions in many other parts of the developing world and the United States. Dr. Touchton's research informs his work in the classroom, and his courses cover a wide variety of topics in comparative politics, and international relations from introductory to graduate levels.