Feminist Economics – Call For Papers : Special issue on expanding LGBTI economic development and empowerment Guest Editors:  M. V. Lee Badgett, James Heintz, and Svati P. Shah

The issue of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) human rights has gained increasing attention globally in recent years. However, attention and action related to economic justice and economic development for LGBTI people has been hampered by a lack of knowledge about the economic side of LGBTI life. Research on the economic challenges and strengths of LGBTI people in the Global South is particularly rare, although evidence exists from some countries about development-related outcomes including health disparities, legal barriers to economic opportunities, economic inequalities, educational challenges, and other kinds of social exclusion. Beyond policies of formal equality, we know very little about effective development programs or organizing strategies that can enhance the livelihoods, lived experiences, and economic power of LGBTI people.

This special issue invites papers from development-related scholars on the economic outcomes of and challenges faced by LGBTI people with a particular emphasis on the Global South, as well as on strategies for improving those economic outcomes. We are especially interested in empirical studies that use an intersectional approach and use new sources of quantitative data or qualitative data in innovative ways. Papers could also focus on subgroups of the broad LGBTI community in a particular country or region.

Many areas of feminist economics and development studies would be suitable topics for papers for the issue, including (but not limited to) the following:

• Analysis of LGBTI people’s economic situation, such as employment, income, financial inclusion (including credit), education, health, or poverty
• The role of caring labor and outcomes for LGBTI people
• How economic outcomes are shaped by household and family relationships, including patterns of household formation among LGBTI people.
• Legibility and illegibility of LGBTI people vis-a-vis the state in terms of access to entitlements, employment, and other rights.
• Studies of interventions that are designed to improve economic outcomes
• Political economic analyses of policies that shape the economic opportunities and outcomes of LGBTI people, either positively or negatively.
• Studies of sex work and other informal employment among LGBTI people.

This special issue is grounded in a broader plan to support and mentor a pool of scholars in LGBTI economic development-related disciplines. Authors will be expected to attend an in-person workshop to present drafts of papers to be scheduled before or after the July 2024 IAFFE Conference in Rome (travel funding is included). For more information on this special issue, the guest editors invite you to attend a webinar on September 7, 2023, at 9 a.m. EDT, where they will lead a discussion of small grants, potential projects, available data, and potential partnerships (with other scholars, mentors, and civil society organizations).

DEADLINE FOR ABSTRACTS

Please send abstracts (up to 400 words) to the Guest Editors at lgbtieconguesteditors@gmail.com by September 20, 2023. Abstracts should describe a clear research question, sources of data, analytical methods, and broader significance for policy and communities.  Authors are also invited to apply for a small grant in the same application by including a separate budget, a budget narrative on how the funds would be spent (up to US$5,000), and a CV. If your abstract is approved, a full draft of the paper must be completed by June 30th, 2024 – prior to the workshop to be held in Rome. A complete manuscript, revised based on the feedback from the workshop, must be submitted by November 1, 2024, via the journal’s Manuscript Central website: https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/rfec/. Note that all manuscripts will also undergo the regular peer review process for Feminist Economics for inclusion in the special issue.

Please send any queries to feministeconomics@rice.edu.  We look forward to receiving your abstract!