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LADB: Overview of LADB

One of the first on-line searchable databases and newsletter publishers, LADB was created in 1985 to generate easily accessible, timely, affordable and comprehensive information on the region to scholars, businesspeople, activists, and government officials.

LADB is an invaluable source of current information on Latin America, tapped by tens of thousands of users every month on the web, and via academic, commercial, and non-profit libraries throughout the world. Users include major research universities, small colleges, multilateral institutions, private corporations, and non-profit organizations worldwide.

LADB's quality derives largely from the organization's affiliation with the University of New Mexico (UNM). As one of the first schools in the nation to offer undergraduate and graduate degrees in Latin American studies, the University has cultivated considerable institutional and research support for programs and projects pertaining to the region. UNM's Latin American & Iberian Institute (LAII) is nationally renowned for the innovative quality of its academic programs, publications, library resources, outreach activities, and cooperative relationships with Latin American universities. Call ( 505) 277-2961for information about the Latin American and Iberian Institute at UNM.) Or visit LAII's web site http://laii.unm.edu/.

LADB History

In 1983, while tinkering with shortwave radio equipment for a University of New Mexico communications project, sociology professor Nelson P. Valdés found he could pick up news broadcasts from Latin American radio stations. Certain that access to such information would be of value to scholars frustrated by the lack of current news on the region and sensing that demand wouldincrease in the future, Valdés began developing an idea of using the broadcasts to compile a database of hard-to-find coverage on Latin America. Hence, the notion of a Latin America database was born.

At that time, communications technologies were just beginning to take off. In addition to radio broadcasts, Valdés began experimenting with satellite reception of international news wires, as well as conferencing and bulletin board networks accessible via modem. By 1985, the university's Latin American and Iberian Institute was ready to launch the Latin America Data Base project, with the objective of generating timely, comprehensive information on the region easily accessible and affordable to scholars, businesspeople, activists, and government officials. By 1986, LADB began compiling and distributing two electronic publications, the Latin American Debt Chronicle (later renamed the Chronicle of Latin American Economic Affairs), and the Central America Update.

A two-person operation, LADB focused exclusively on producing the bulletins, a process which consisted of collecting and combining sources, translating them from Spanish to English, checking for inconsistencies, and rewriting to produce original chronologies, summaries, and updates. The publications were distributed via two commercial database services and electronic mail/conferencing networks Bitnet, Internet, and Peacenet.

In 1990, LADB joined the federally-funded Database Consortium on Latin America. LADB increased its staff to a total of five full-time positions. Coverage and source materials were also expanded, and two titles added, SourceMex - Economic News & Analysis on Mexico and NotiSur - Latin American Political Affairs. With the addition of the titles, LADB covered most broadly defined economic, political, and social developments for the entire region, with each publication appearing on a weekly basis. LADB publications were picked up by additional commercial database vendors, and plans commenced to develop a CD-ROM product.

The federal grant also allowed LADB to achieve its original project goal: the creation of a stand-alone database. LADB staff began working with a UNM computing center technical team to design a databased system, and by early 1991, created a database containing all LADB publications released from 1986 to the present.

A grant from the Andrew C. Mellon Foundation in 1994 has allowed LADB to collect and add Spanish-language Latin American economic journals to the searchable database, thus greatly expanding its scope.

In 1995, a grant from the Ford Foundation supported the creation of a new newsletter, NotiCen (formerly EcoCentral) and related projects focusing on developing an on-line dialogue on sustainable development and the economy of Central America and including relevant journals from the region in LADB's database.

A 1996 U.S. Information Agency grant allows LADB to greatly increase access to the database by Latin American on-line users and to expand the data base's Spanish language content.

LADB    Latin American & Iberian Institute    MSC 02 1690    1 University of New Mexico    Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001
Telephone: (505) 277-6839    E-mail: info@ladb.unm.edu    FAX: (505) 277-5989    Last modified: 2007-05-10