Distinguished Professor, Hobby School of Public Affairs
Director, Center for Public Policy

Expertise: Political economy, globalization, fiscal policy and taxation, political representation, quantitative methods

Career Highlights:

Pablo M. Pinto is a distinguished professor at the Hobby School of Public Affairs, University of Houston, where he also serves as director of the Hobby School's Center for Public Policy. He is an affiliated faculty in the Department of Political Science and a UH Energy Fellow. 

Pinto’s research examines how interactions between foreign and domestic governments and economic actors shape political and economic outcomes at home and abroad. His published work spans international and comparative political economy, political representation and participation, fiscal policy and taxation, sustainability and the energy transition, disaster resilience and survey research methods. Pinto is the author of “Partisan Investment in the Global Economy” (Cambridge University Press) and co-author of “Politics and FDI” (University of Michigan Press). His articles have appeared in leading journals including International Organization, Comparative Political Studies, Legislative Studies Quarterly, Electoral Studies, International Studies Quarterly, Economics & Politics, Political Analysis, State Politics & Policy Quarterly, Journal of Risk and Financial Management, Review of International Political Economy and Latin American Politics & Society, among other outlets.

His recent research investigates the political economy of trade policy and the sources of the backlash against globalization, with particular attention to the US–China trade war, the distributive consequences of global value chains, and the political dynamics of protectionism. He also examines the intersection of sustainability and trade, exploring how climate policy and global production networks affect domestic politics and international cooperation.

As director of the Center for Public Policy, Pinto leads major research and evaluation initiatives in collaboration with community organizations and local, state, federal and international governments. He has co-led NSF-funded projects including Data Science for the Energy Transition and the Hurricane Harvey Longitudinal Panel Survey, and spearheaded development of the Survey on Public Attitudes and Community Engagement (SPACE) City Panel and the VRAP indices and dashboard on vulnerability, resilience, affordability and preparedness.

A dedicated teacher and mentor, Pinto co-directs the SEEA Experiential Training Program and the Empirical Implications of Theoretical Models (EITM) Summer Institute, integrating students into multi-disciplinary research teams for hands-on training in data science, survey design and applied policy analysis. His contributions have been recognized with multiple awards, including the Bruce Russett Award for Best Article in the Journal of Conflict Resolution (2022) and the Midwest Political Science Association Best Paper in International Relations Award (2016).

Pinto holds a Ph.D. in Political Science and International Affairs from the University of California San Diego, an M.A. in International Politics from Aoyama Gakuin University in Japan, and a law degree from Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina. Prior to joining the University of Houston in 2014, Pinto was a member of the faculty of Columbia University.