Ada Gonzalez-Torres is an Assistant Professor in the Economics Department at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. Her main research fields are in development economics and political economy. In her dissertation she studies drivers of civil violence, its consequences for main economic outcomes and interactions between institutions, beliefs and social norms, using quasi-experimental designs and original data. She has a strong interest in African economic development and has conducted field research in Guinea, as well as worked in program implementation in Microfinance in Tanzania. Ada holds a PhD in Economics from the European University Institute in Florence, an MSc in Economics from Toulouse School of Economics, a BA in Economics and a Law degree from Carlos III University in Madrid. She has also worked as policy consultant and researcher for the European Commission and the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Sustainable Development in France.