I am a Political Science Ph.D. Candidate and an affiliate with the Institute of Behavioral Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder. My research focuses on inequality-reducing policies and governance reforms including electoral quotas, property rights, and social policy. I use multi-methods to inform my research including observational data, experimental data, primary surveys, and in-depth interviews. My research work has appeared in Political Research Quarterly, and Conservation Letters.
My research is generously supported by the APSA’s Women, Gender, and Politics Research Section, Institute of Behavioral Studies, Department of Political Science at CU Boulder, among other grants, and awards. In 2021, I received Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research on Women and Politics.
Since 2022-23, I am serving as a research advisor for the STUDIO Research Lab. Since Spring 2023, I am co-organizing a Gender and Political Participation (GPP) Working Group along with Rashi Sabherwal. In AY 2020-21, I served as a design team member to develop a new certificate program Just and Equitable Teaching Micro-credential at CU Boulder.
I grew up in a small town Malout in the state of Punjab in India. I went to pursue B.Sc. in Agriculture and then MBA in Natural Resource Management. Prior to joining CU, I worked in the development and sustainability governance sector in India for World Bank, USAID, and IFAD-funded developmental projects. I share glimpses of my fieldwork here.
Prospective political science graduate students are welcome to email me if they would like to discuss their application material. I can be reached at komal[dot]kaur[at]colorado.edu