Damares Lopes Afonso

My research lies at the intersection of economic geography, regional development, global value chains, and environmental sustainability. I study how trade, production networks, and industrial transformation affect regional competitiveness, territorial inequalities, and environmental pressures, including deforestation, land-use change, biodiversity loss, greenhouse-gas emissions, and resource use. Using input-output analysis, environmental accounting, spatial data, and econometric methods, I investigate how regions can strengthen resilience, upgrade within global production networks, and transition towards more sustainable development pathways.

• Honorable Mention, 8th MapBiomas Award (2026),
• 39th BNDES (Brazilian Development Bank) Economics Award (2025),
• Travel Grant, International Input-Output Association (IIOA) (2023),
• Fulbright Doctoral Dissertation Research Award (DDRA) (2022),
• Paulo Haddad Award, Brazilian Association of Regional and Urban Studies (ABER) (2022).

• Afonso, D.L.; Perobelli, F.S.; Faria, W.R.; Zu Ermgassen, E. (2026). The Role of Domestic and International Markets in the Loss of Nature Across Brazil. Environmental Research Letters.
• Capello, R.; Afonso, D.L.; Perucca, G. (2025). Trade-in-Task and Regional Income Inequalities. International Economics.
• Capello, R.; Afonso, D.L.; Perucca, G. (2025). The Double Dark Side of Regional Back-Shoring. Global Challenges & Regional Science.
• Afonso, D.L. (2025). Circular Economy and Trade in Global Value Chains: Innovative Milieu Approach. European Planning Studies.
• Afonso, D.L.; Bastos, S.Q.A.; Perobelli, F.S.; Betarelli Junior, A.A. (2025). Impacts of Institutional Efficiency on Exports in Developed and Developing Countries. The International Trade Journal.
• Afonso, D.L.; Perobelli, F.S.; Bastos, S.Q.A. (2022). South-South Trade: An Analysis of Trade Integration in the G-77. Journal of International Development.

• International Economics
• The Annals of Regional Science
• The World Economy
• Journal of International Development
• Planejamento e Políticas Públicas
• Revista Brasileira de Estudos Regionais e Urbanos
• Cadernos do Desenvolvimento Fluminense

• Teaching Assistant, Graduate Multivariate Analysis, UFJF (2019)
• Teaching Assistant, Undergraduate Regional and Urban Economics, UFJF (2019)
• Teaching Assistant, Undergraduate Macroeconomics I, UFJF (2018)
• Co-Instructor, Life Cycle Assessment and Input-Output Analysis, UCLouvain (2025)

2026

European Society for Ecological Economics (ESEE), Ghent, Belgium

2025

European Regional Science Association (ERSA) Congress, Athens, Greece

2024

RSAI World Congress, Kecskemét, Hungary

Regional Science Association International (RSAI), Hungary

ERSA Congress, Portugal

2023

International Input-Output Association (IIOA), Alghero, Italy

2021

RSAI World Congress

2019

Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP), Warsaw, Poland

2018

GTAP Conference, Cartagena, Colombia

International Input-Output Association (IIOA), Brazil

• Researcher, Laboratory for Territorial and Sectoral Analysis (LATES), Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF), Brazil (2014-Present)
• Researcher, Observatory of Inequalities in Education, Health and Sustainability (ODES), Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF), Brazil (2023-Present)
• Representative of Master's Students, Graduate Program in Economics, Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF), Brazil (2018-2019)
• Vice-President, Economics Students' Association, Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF), Brazil (2015-2016)
• Communications Secretary, Economics Students' Association, Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF), Brazil (2014-2015)
• Research and Extension Member, Conjuntura e Mercados Consultoria Júnior (CMC Jr.), Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF), Brazil (2014-2015)