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My current research project, Rethinking Urban Poverty in the United States, is an academic program that combines teaching, research, and service learning in West Philadelphia. We move away from conventional economic and welfare approaches of poverty by defining it as a substantive question related to access—to transport, housing, nutrition, health-care, and so on.
This project is expanding to a new initiative called the Philadelphia Semester of Public Scholarship, which involves the development of courses on campus that respond to needs of inner-city communities such as small business development, nutrition and health, and so on. I am coordinating this inter-college effort to train about 20 students each semester doing service learning in residence in Philadelphia.
My research combines theories of economic development, postmodern discourse theory, and Geographical Information Systems (GIS). Despite our massive efforts at economic development, statistical evidence shows a troubling persistence of poverty and increasing inequality of income (both within and between nations). Reminiscent of a Kuhnian "crisis in the paradigm", development economists (and their principal Marxist critics) are not able to offer us a satisfactory explanation of the failure of development.
Using the writings of Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, Jean-Francois Lyotard, Jean Baudrillard, and Richard Rorty, I argue that postmodern discourse theory provides a way out of the impasse of the crisis of development. First is the claim that economics and Marxism cannot help us to eradicate poverty because these discourses are deeply implicated in the creation of the problem. Second is the view that the material deprivations the poor experience are a form of socially constructed scarcity, a process that is concealed by the conventional discourses on development. Third is the notion that substantive solutions to poverty can be found through a new contextual place-based approach to resources. I have found GIS to be an invaluable tool in implementing the third part of this argument.
Office address: 321 Walker Building, University Park, PA 16802
Phone: 814-865-1187
E-mail Dr. Yapa
B.A. (Geography), Sri Lanka
Ph.D. (Geography), Syracuse University
"What is Scarcity?" A Dictionary for the Twenty-First Century: The Ambivalent Future of Knowledge and Culture edited by A. Nandy and V. Lal. In press.
"Globalization and Poverty: A Post Structural View." A book chapter in Globalization, The Third World, and Poverty Alleviation in the 21st Century edited by Bernard Logan, Ashgate Publishing, Burlington, VT, 2002.
"Rethinking Poverty in Sri Lanka." A book chapter in South Asia in a Globalizing World: A Reconstructed Regional Geography edited by R. Bradnock and G. Williams. Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, 2002.
"How the Discipline of Geography Exacerbates Poverty in the Third World." Futures: the Journal of Forecasting and Planning, Vol. 34, 2002, pp 33-46.
"Integrating Teaching, Research, and Service—A Philadelphia Field Project." Bulletin of Science, Technology, and Society. Vol. 20, 2000, pp. 175-177. Introduction to a special issue.
El Taller, a poverty oriented NGO based in Tunisia
Center for Regional Development Studies, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka
Environmental Health Project, United States Agency for International Development
Ministry of Health, Eritrea
Chemonics International, Cairo, Egypt
Winrock International, Jakarta, Indonesia
National Economic Development Authority, Manila, Philippines
NORAD: Norwegian Agency for International Economic Aid (Sri Lanka Office)
The Institute of Social Studies, The Hague, The Netherlands
The Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, Thailand
The Institute for Development Anthropology, Binghamton, N.Y.
The U.S. Agency for International Development
(Offices in Washington, D.C.; Lima, Peru; La Paz, Bolivia; Colombo, Sri Lanka)
The World Bank, Washington, D.C.
United Nations Development Program, Office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
United Nations Development Program, Office in Colombo, Sri Lanka
The Ministry of Plan Implementation, Government of Sri Lanka.
2006 President's Award for Excellence in Academic Integration
Wilson Outstanding Teaching Award. 1992. The College of Earth and Mineral Sciences.
Pennsylvania State University. Outreach Award for Year 2000.
Wilson Outstanding Service Award for Year 2001. The College of Earth and Minerals Sciences.
National Association for Multicultural Education Program Award for 2002.
Geography Internships—Geog 495
Geography of the Developing World—Geog 103 and Geog 103H
Computer Assisted Regional Analysis—Geog 330
Philadelphia Field Project—Geog 496H
McCracken, Ph.D., "Small Places, Regionalism and Economic Geography"
Teresina Bailey, M.A. "Poverty and the Nutrition Discourse in Urban America: A Case Study of a Pittsburgh Neighborhood"
Mirdula Singh, M.A. "The Anti-smoking Campaign in the U.S. as a Social Movement"
Matt Kelly, Ph.D. "Community Development and Public Scholarship"
S. Bontrager, B.S. (Geography) "Mixed Income Housing and Poverty Alleviation
Rebecca York, B.A. (Education) "Intergenerational Learning in West Philadelphia"
Emmalynne Hu, B.S. (Civil Engineering) "Use of GIS as a Tool of Community Development"
Iliopoulou, Ph.D., 1986. "Problem Regions in Greece and the Locational Incentives Policy in Manufacturing"
Stokke, Kristian, Ph.D, 1992. "The rural non-farm sector in Sri Lanka"
Juan Gonzalez, Ph.D., 1997. "Poverty Discourse and the Poor in Colombia"
Debora Feder, Ph.D., 2002. "End-use Analysis and Energy Policy in the U.S."
Adelman, M.A., Geography, 1982. "Basic Needs and the Export Economy of Sri Lanka"
Teo, M.A., Geography, 1984. "The Relationship Between Poverty and Fertility in Some Less Developed Countries"
Vasile, M.A., 1986. "Modernizing the Struggle for Bread: Agrarian Transformation and Rural Poverty in El Salvador"
Ramphall, M.A., 1986. "Development or Dependence? Political Economy of Industrialization in Trinidad and Tobago, 1959-1983"
Dilley, M.A., 1989. "The concept of Geographical Project Monitoring"
Gonzalez, M.A., 1990. "Sustainable Development and the New Politics of Nature"
Boyd, M.A., 1991. "Lessons for Development from Amish Agriculture"
Li, Wen-Yao, M.A., 1991. "CAD-based Geographical Information Systems"
Mazumdar, Purba, M.A., 1992. "Population Planning: The Case of Kerala, India"
McCraken, David, M.A., 1992. "Development, Economic History and Place"
Rain, David, M.A., 1993. "Culture in Practice: An Investigation of Real Settings for Demographic Behavior in Kano State, Nigeria"
Diamond, Larry, M.A., 1993. "Sustainable Agriculture in Pennsylvania"
Sheppard, J. M.A., 1993. "Evolution in Pennsylvania Agriculture"
Ladd, Larry, M.A. 1995. "Accessiblity and Polyandry in the Indian Himalayas"
Kopecky, Steve, M.A. 1998. "Poverty on the Navajo Reservation"
Carnes, Laura, M.A. 2002. "Sustainable Agriculture in Pennsylvania"
L. Laaken, 1992 (Political Science) "Community Gardening as a Tool for Empowerment"
E. Bozza, 1997 (Geography) "The Ecological and Social Consequences of Suburban Living"
J. Pettulo, 1997 (Geography) "Poverty and Volunteerism in the City of Philadelphia"
S. Walker, 1998 (Communications) "International Debt and the Economic Crisis in Jamaica"
A. Avery, 1998 (Education) "Adolescent Clothing: The Influence of Priorities on Poverty"
E. Westerman, 1998 (Geography) "Wall Murals of Philadelphia: Windows into Urban Communities"
M. Schell, 1999 (Geography) "Poverty in Philadelphia: Transport as a Change Agent"
F. Cutrone, 2000 (Education) "Non-traditional Resources for Urban Education"
E. McCall, 2000 (Biology) "The Role of Preventive Health Care in Poverty Alleviation"
J. Friedrich, 2001 (Sociology) "ACORN in Philadelphia: A Postmodern Evaluation"
E. Farr, 2001 (Geography) "Approaching Poverty via Food and Nutrition"
J. Brake, 2001 (Business) "The Role of Nonprofit Organizations in Providing Low-income Housing"
J. Gara, 2001 (Psychology) "The Role of Youth IN Service"
G. Rathnamala, 2002 (Geography) "Housing Rehabilitation in Community Development"
C. Bilka, 2002 (Family Studies) "Alternative Schooling in the Inner City"
M. Nguyen, 2002 (Biology) "Health Services West Philadelphia"
K. Anderson, 2002 (American Studies) "The Role of Sports in Youth Development"