The invisible ones

Inspired by the economic and social trends of the countries of the region, the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, known by the Spanish acronym CEPAL, ³ is the home of “historical structuralism,” a well-articulated school of thought. Important work has been done to understand both the CEPAL’s role within the 20th-century history of economic thought and its influence on Latin American economic policy. ⁴ The work of many of its key members—such as Raúl Prebisch and Celso Furtado—has been the subject of important research. The contributions of Maria da Conceição Tavares, one of its central thinkers, have also raised significant discussions within the scientific community. ⁵ Nevertheless, very little is known about other women whose professional and intellectual careers have been shaped at the CEPAL’s forums (journals, seminars, headquarters, etc.) and, more generally, by the CEPAL’s ideas; women who contributed significantly to shaping and advancing the development of the Commission’s programs and ideas.