Welcome,
I am an economist. I study the micro-foundations of power, and how power shapes economic and human outcomes (Dev, PE).
Much of my research is in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where I co-founded Marakuja Research and built partnerships with armed groups and state agencies.
I combine applied economics with history, anthropology, political science, and moral psychology. A Podcast about this work.
Curriculum Vitae | Google Scholar
R.Sanchez-de-la-Sierra@lse.ac.uk
Teaching and pedagogy: Political Economy of Development (PhD), Power and “Development” (Master).
In 2024, I was Outstanding Faculty of the Year at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy and also delivered the school’s graduation speech, known as the “Last Lecture.” Read it here: Last Lecture.
Cinema: I am the subject of Stephan Hilpert‘s award-winning documentary Congo Calling. (2019; The Guardian review.
So who am I?
In Spain, naming conventions follow a two-surname system: people carry two surnames, traditionally the first inherited from the father and the second from the mother.
Sánchez is the first surname (it is not a middle name), and De la Sierra is my second surname, inherited from my mother. It’s not noble, it just means “from the mountains” (the Cantabrian mountains of northern Spain).
So, my last name (surname) is SÁNCHEZ DE LA SIERRA. And my first (given) name is just Raúl in Spanish, Raoul in French, because I grew up in France.
Raúl SÁNCHEZ DE LA SIERRA 