Dr. Michele Delera


Affiliated researcher

Research group(s):
2. Structural Change and Economic Development
1. Economics of Knowledge and Innovation

I am currently a Senior Consultant at research and consulting firm Ecorys. At UNU-MERIT, my research focused on the dynamics of international technology diffusion through trade and value chain participation, and its implications for economic development and the environment. My PhD looks at the extent to which the fragmentation of production into global supply chains has contributed to productivity improvements in emerging markets, and whether these translate into gains in the energy and emission efficiency of production. I am also interested in the economic and environmental impacts of regional and preferential trade agreements. I use a variety of data, ranging from multi-regional input output tables to firm and product-level data. 

At Ecorys, I work on research, evaluation, and technical assistance projects at the nexus between international trade, private sector development, and the environment. My past professional experiences include working as an Economist with the Research, Policy and Statistics branch of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). During my PhD, I have worked as a consultant on projects supported by the International Growth Centre (IGC), the German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA), and the Italian Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI), among others. I hold a BA and an MSc in Development Studies from, respectively, the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and the London School of Economics (LSE).

My published research can be found on my Google Scholar profile.                             




Selected publications by Michele Delera


Articles (journal, professional, popular)
Delera, Michele , Carlo Pietrobelli, Elisa Calza & Alejandro Lavopa, 2022, Does value chain participation facilitate the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies in developing countries?, World Development, 152, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2021.105788, More information
Delera, Michele & Neil Foster-McGregor, 2020, On PTAs and Bilateral Trade: Is GVC Trade Sensitive to the Breadth of Trade Policy Cooperation?, Economies, 8(4), DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/economies8040084, More information


UNU-MERIT Working Papers
Delera, Michele , Carlo Pietrobelli, Elisa Calza & Alejandro Lavopa, 2020, Does value chain participation facilitate the adoption of industry 4.0 technologies in developing countries?, UNU-MERIT Working Paper 2020-046


External working papers
Delera, Michele , 2021, Is production in global value chains (GVCs) sustainable? A review of the empirical evidence on social and environmental sustainabilitiy in GVCs, More information


Theses
Delera, Michele , 2024, Essays on Global Value Chains, Technology Diffusion and the Enviornment, PhD dissertation Maastricht University


UNU-MERIT