Directors & Staff

Paul M. Lubeck,  Director

Paul M. Lubeck is Professor of Sociology and Director of the Global Information and Social Enterprise Studies Program at the University of California, Santa Cruz.  His research focuses on global political economy, civil society and information studies, and the global sociology of Muslim social movements. His recognized expertise lies in the analysis of political, economic, and discursive  changes in Muslim world, specializing on Nigeria.  His wide-ranging intellectual interests have produced a corpus of work that bridges the boundaries between n scholarship, advocacy and social policy.  For the past three decades, Lubeck’s work has extended from organizing cooperatives among Muslim peasants in Niger, to conducting intensive urban field work in Nigeria, Ghana, Mexico and Ghana.  More recently, he has consulted with NGOs from the Global South on implementation of information strategies, and advised Nigerian state governments on the regional industrial policy lessons to be drawn from Malaysia.  Lubeck’s first book, Islam and Urban Labor in Northern Nigeria: The Making of a Muslim Working Class, was awarded the Herskovits Prize. 

Kyle Eischen, Associate Director

Kyle is currently Assistant Dean for Academic Planning and Research in the Division of Social Sciences at UCSC, as well as a Research Fellow at the Center for Global, International and Regional Studies. He was a co-founder and original director of GIIP, and continues to actively teach and mentor within the program. His experience is in economic development and sustainability with on-the-ground projects, research and experience in Silicon Valley, India and Mexico.

Elisabeth Nishioka, Finance and Digital Design

Christina Kliesch, Network Manager