Research to Transform
TREEdimensional was created to bring TREES-supported research into the public discourse. This first edition brings together four perspectives on inequality and a common question: What causes some people, regions, or needs to be considered less important than others?
By Leopoldo Fergusson1, Angie Bautista2 and Nicolás Moreno Gutiérrez3
One of TREES’s core beliefs is that to transform reality, we must change the mindset that underpins it. Although inequalities are closely linked to the greatest challenges of our time—such as climate change, technological advancements, distrust of institutions, and the weakening of democratic systems, we still struggle to understand how they arise, why they persist, and how they shape the way we relate to one another and the opportunities available to us.
That is why, at TREES, we support research that asks new questions and generates evidence on the root causes and consequences of inequalities in Colombia and Latin America. But if we want knowledge to help transform reality, it is not enough to simply fund rigorous research: its findings must move beyond specialized circles, enrich educational processes, and enter the public discourse.
TREEdimensional was created for this very purpose. We want people, regardless of their educational background, to be able to read, consult, and discuss the research we support. The journal’s name reflects our understanding of inequality as a complex, multidimensional phenomenon that cannot be explained from a single perspective or discipline.
With TREEdimensional, we aim to launch a different kind of editorial series amid the fast pace and brevity of social media. A space to pause, delve deeper, and allow research to engage in dialogue with one another and with their readers.
Finally, we want to reframe the scope of the discussion on inequality so that it focuses not only on the distribution of resources and opportunities, but above all on recognition. Because an unequal society not only distributes resources poorly, it also decides who counts. This approach is essential for conveying the close link between inequality and democracy.
The most important aspect of equity is that all people are treated equally as members of a political community. This includes protection by the state, respect, and the autonomy to make decisions. That this consideration be the same for everyone—that there be no second-class citizens—is the fundamental promise of democracy.
In this first issue, we present four articles that engage with this understanding of inequality: the first addresses biases in artificial intelligence in Latin American contexts; the second analyzes how conversations can transform perceptions of inequality; the third explores the invisible effects of drug trafficking on daily life and the labor market; and, finally, an essay on the political and cultural roots of Colombia’s fiscal weakness.
These are research projects, supported by TREES, that address different dimensions of inequality and share a common question: What mechanisms cause some people, regions, or needs to be given less weight than others?
We hope this knowledge will help enrich conversations and build a community around these issues—a community that brings together researchers, students, scholars, educators, decision-makers, and members of civil society. A community that can engage with the questions and new knowledge generated by this research, discuss its implications, and find ways to address the problems identified therein.
We hope you enjoy this first issue of TREEdimensional.
- Leopoldo Fergusson is a full professor in the School of Economics at the Universidad de los Andes and co-director of TREES ↩︎
- Angie Bautista is the Communications Coordinator at TREES ↩︎
- Nicolás Moreno Gutiérrez is a law student at the Universidad de los Andes and a communications assistant at TREES. ↩︎
