Gary Gereffi receives honorary doctorate degree from University of Padua
Professor emeritus and founding director of the Global Value Chains Center was recognized for his scientific contributions on global value chains and understanding the dynamics of globalization.
Gary Gereffi, professor emeritus of sociology and Duke Center for International Development affiliate faculty member, was presented with an honorary research doctorate degree in economics and management from the University of Padua in Italy.
During the March 13 conferral ceremony, Gereffi delivered the lecture, “Reglobalization in a Post-Pandemic Supply Chain World.”
Gereffi, an originator of the Global Value Chains framework, is the founding director of the Global Value Chains Center at Duke University and teaches the Global Value Chain Analysis course in Duke’s Master of International Development Policy program. His theory of global value chains (GVCs) introduced an original and interdisciplinary perspective of the complex process of globalization and its economic, socio-political and environmental implications. The GVC approach has been used as a framework by a wide variety of international organizations such as the World Bank, the World Trade Organization, the International Labor Organization, and the World Economic Forum.
Gereffi has authored more than a dozen books and numerous articles on globalization, global supply chains, and economic, social and environmental upgrading. His most recent books include “China’s New Development Strategies: Upgrading from Above and from Below in Global Value Chains” (2022), “Handbook on Global Value Chains” (2019), and “Global Value Chains and Development: Redefining the Contours of 21st Century Capitalism” (2018).
In addition to his consulting work with international organizations and national governments, Gereffi testified before the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee on “Implementing Resilient Supply Chains,” and advised the U.S. Department of Commerce and State Department on global supply chain initiatives.
Following the honorary doctorate ceremony, Gereffi participated in workshops on “Global Value Chain studies: Taking stock, looking ahead,” in which academics and practitioners discussed the contribution of GVC literature to understanding the dynamics of globalization and its impact on the reconfiguration of supply chains and current reshoring, diversification, and sustainability initiatives across diverse world regions.