Greg Lopez

Biography

I am a lecturer with the Murdoch University Executive Education Centre. Prior to this role, I worked in various research and advocacy capacities with private consultancies, think tanks, and non-governmental organisations. I have extensive experience in the region, working on public policy issues involving economic and political reforms, and have undertaken in depth research and analysis in these areas. I have been educated both in Malaysia and Australia and hold a PhD in economics from the Australian National University. Broadly, my research interest is in understanding the interplay between state, society and markets in the region. More specifically, I am interested in the political economy and institutional arrangements of countries that are “stuck in the middle income trap” in this region and Australia’s relationship with them. I am also a fellow at the Asia Research Centre and a member of the Centre for Responsible Citizenship and Sustainability, both at Murdoch University’s School of Business and Governance in Perth, Western Australia. I also hold an ongoing visiting fellowship at the Department of Political and Social Change, Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs at the Australian National University.

Research Interest

Investigating the political, social and economic challenges faced by countries in the Indo-Pacific region (with specific focus on Southeast Asia, in particular Malaysia) that are experiencing the middle-income trap. Investigating key public policy issues impacting Western Australia and its main trade and investment partners in the Indo-Pacific region (specifically Southeast Asia, in particular Malaysia).