Draft:Stefania Paredes Fuentes

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Stefania Paredes Fuentes is an Ecuadorian economist. She is currently Head of Education at the National Bank of Slovakia and Visiting Fellow at the University of Southampton (UK). She is known for her work in economics education, diversity and inclusion in higher education, and the reform of economics curricula.

Early life and education

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Paredes Fuentes was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador. After completing secondary school in Ecuador, she moved to Italy to study economics at the Università di Genova, where she also obtained a Laurea Specialistica in International Economics (equivalent to an MSc). She later relocated to the United Kingdom to pursue postgraduate studies, earning an MSc and PhD in Economics from the University of East Anglia.

Her doctoral research critically examined the institutional origins of economic growth in Latin America, engaging with the "colonial origins of development" hypothesis proposed by Acemoglu, Johnson, and Robinson (AJR). The AJR model treats “colonialism” as monolithic, but Latin America experienced diverse colonial strategies and institutions that evolved over time and varied significantly by region. This diversity is flattened in their analysis, limiting the model’s explanatory power. Latin American countries gained independence in the early 19th century, and the institutions that formed afterward were shaped by civil wars, elite power struggles, and international pressures. AJR under-emphasize how these post-colonial factors restructured institutions in ways not predicted by settler mortality.[1]

Academic career

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Paredes Fuentes has held academic posts at the University of Bristol, the University of Warwick and the University of Southampton. In September 2025, she became the Head of Education at the National Bank of Slovakia.

In August 2025, she was awarded a National Teaching Fellowship by Advance HE in recognition of contributions to student outcomes and teaching in UK higher education.[2] In 2023, she was a member of the advisory group that revised the UK Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) Subject Benchmark Statement for Economics.[3]

In 2021, Paredes Fuentes received the Warwick Award for Teaching Excellence (WATE), in recognition of her work creating inclusive, student-centered learning environments and championing diversity in economics education.[4]

She is the editor of Teaching Macroeconomics: A Modern and Inclusive Approach (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2025).[5]

In the past, she served as Executive Board member of the UK Economics Network. She has also authored several teaching case studies for the Network, including a widely cited piece on online assessment practices during the COVID-19 pandemic.[6]

Advocacy and recognition

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In 2020, Paredes Fuentes organised the first Women in Economics: Student Workshop at the University of Warwick, which gathered students from around 20 UK universities to discuss inclusion in economics.[7] The resulting report, Economics for All: 7 Action Points to Make Economics More Inclusive, was highly commended at the university’s Excellence in Gender Equality Awards.[8]

In September 2020, she was appointed Diversity Champion of the Royal Economic Society (RES), where she has led initiatives to embed equity and inclusion in the Society’s governance and professional activities.[9]

Paredes Fuentes co-authored the report Who Studies Economics? An Analysis of Diversity in the UK Economics Pipeline, published by the RES, which analyses socio-economic and demographic diversity among economics students.[10] The report was discussed in the Financial Times and the LSE Impact Blog for its findings on inequality in economics education.[11][12]

Selected works

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  • Paredes Fuentes, S. (2024). Teaching Macroeconomics: A Modern and Inclusive Approach (Editor), Edward Elgar Publishing, 2025[5]
  • Paredes Fuentes, S. (2024). "Breaking Ivory Walls in Higher Education: Embracing Diversity and Creating Belonging" in Beyond Ivory Towers: Navigating Higher Education in the Future, FUNCAS Social and Economic Studies.[13]
  • Paredes Fuentes, S. (2024). "Fostering inclusive excellence: designing effective assessments for online education" in Teaching Economics Online.[14]
  • Burnett, T. & Paredes Fuentes, S. (2020). "Assessment in the Time of Pandemic: A Panic-Free Guide" – a case study published by The Economics Network.[6]
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References

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  1. ^ Paredes Fuentes, Gladys Stefania (September 2013). Dr Stefania Paredes Fuentes. UEA Thesis repository (Thesis). Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  2. ^ {{cite web|title=National Teaching Fellows 2025|url=https://www.advance-he.ac.uk/ntfs/stefania-paredes-fuentes%7Cwebsite=Advanced Higher Education|access-date=10 October 2025
  3. ^ "Subject Benchmark Statement: Economics (2023)". Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education. 2023. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  4. ^ "Warwick Awards for Teaching Excellence 2021 – All Winners". University of Warwick. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  5. ^ a b "Teaching Macroeconomics,Elgar Guides to Teaching". Teaching Macroeconomics: A Modern and Inclusive Approach. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  6. ^ a b "Assessment in the Time of Pandemic: A Panic-free Guide". Economics Network. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  7. ^ "Warwick Women in Economics: About us". Warwick Women in Economics. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  8. ^ "Women in Economics Highly Commended at the Excellence in Gender Equality Awards". University of Warwick. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  9. ^ "RES appoints Stefania Paredes Fuentes as Diversity Champion". Royal Economic Society. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  10. ^ "Who Studies Economics? An Analysis of Diversity in the UK Economics Pipeline". Royal Economic Society. 22 March 2023. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  11. ^ "Why is the field of economics still so elitist?". Financial Times. 14 April 2023. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  12. ^ "Lack of diversity in economics holds back its relevance and value to society". LSE Impact Blog. 12 May 2023. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  13. ^ "Breaking Ivory Walls in Higher Education: Embracing Diversity and Creating Belonging". Beyond Ivory Tower. Navigating Higher Education in the Future. 2024-11-01. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
  14. ^ "Fostering inclusive excellence: Designing effective assessments for online education". Fostering inclusive excellence. Elgar Guides to Teaching. Edward Elgar. 6 August 2024. pp. 110–130. ISBN 978-1-80392-198-3. Retrieved 14 May 2025. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)