I will be joining the faculty at Cornell in July, 2008. I received my Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in 2001. My area of interest is Chinese politics. My focus is on the policy making and implementation process.

I have written two books. The first, The Politics of Piracy (Cornell University Press, 2005), is a study on why some types of intellectual property are better enforced than others in China. The second book, China's Water Warriors (Cornell University Press, 2008), looks at how the policy making process in China has become increasingly pluralized over the past decade, as NGOs, the media, and other hitherto peripheral actors now have a seat at the policy making table.

I have also written several chapters in edited volumes and have articles appearing in The China Quarterly, Comparative Politics, and International Organization.My current project is a comparison of political campaigns during the Mao era (1949-1976) and the reform period (1978-Present).

I have lived in China for just under seven years, as an English teacher (1988-1989), a production manager for a toy company (1991-1994, 1995, 1996), and as a scholar (1998-1999, 2001-Present). Field sites (so far) include Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Guangdong, Guizhou, Jiangsu, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Zhejiang.

Please also feel free to check out my web site (http://artsci.wustl.edu/~amertha/) to access articles and working papers, or to find out more about me.

Curriculum Vitae