Lessons Learned from Extensive Travel to Cuba with Dr. Greg Bradley

Economic Freedom, Multiculturalism, and Attempts at Reform: Lessons Learned from Extensive Travel to Cuba with Dr. Greg Bradley

It has long been speculated that attempts at economic reform in Cuba could generate a potential, unintended sociocultural dilemma among its populace. The political and economic history of Cuba has been well documented over time. With the fall of the Soviet Union in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Cuba underwent some of its darkest economic days before striking a deal with Venezuela to export professional services for oil in 2000. This strategy proved to be advantageous in the short term, but the fall of Venezuela, the long-term prospects for Cuba’s economic health and independence are in question.

This discussion will be derived from Dr. Bradley’s decade of traveling to Cuba to lecture to post-graduate psychology students on Behavioral Economics and Choice Architecture at the University of Havana. His original reason for visiting was to get closer to what looked to be the origin of a major sociopolitical and economic transformation. The lessons learned in the next ten years were immense. Among several topics, he will discuss the outcomes of speaking at conferences in the country, including his presentation at Hominis (a hemispheric conference held bi-annually in Havana) on Cuba’s black economic market. This session will also cover lessons learned in multiculturalism, direct observations of the Cuban economy, his experience while in country with the death of Hugo Chavez, and many anecdotal stories of his time in Cuba to include the multiple times he was detained by the Cuban military for lecturing on behavioral economics and discussing capitalistic economic systems.

The objectives of the session for attendees are:
1. To gain an in-depth understanding of the current and past sociocultural landscape in Cuba.
2. To develop the knowledge to deconstruct the current and past political economy in Cuba.
3. To understand the current and past perspective of Cuban residents regarding their own government and that of the United States.
4. To better understand how multiculturalism plays a significant role in the everyday lives of Cubans.
5. To compare and contrast the Cuban economy to that of other countries, including very important variable nuances.
6. To develop a personal framework regarding what is next for Cuba, both politically and economically.