Jock O'Connell

Jock O'Connell (born 1947) is the International Trade & Economics Advisor at the University of California Center, Sacramento, where he is responsible for coordinating workshops and seminars intended to keep California policymakers abreast of the latest developments affecting California's competitive position in the global economy. He is also a member of the California Economic Strategy Panel's Technical Advisory Group [See http://www.labor.ca.gov/panel/pdf/2007_Technical_Advisors.pdf] and the (U.S.) Transportation Research Board's Committee on Intergovernmental Relations in Aviation.

O'Connell is a recognized expert on the internationalization of California's economy. [Dan Walters, the Sacramento Bee's chief political correspondent, called Mr. O'Connell "an authentic authority on California's international trade" in his column of April 19, 2006.] Much of his recent research involves the condition of the state's international trade infrastructure. A 2007 course he taught on the Globalization of California's Economy at the UC Center Sacramento featured the participation of key state policymakers and served as a forum exploring the state's position in the global economy and addressing the legitimate role of state government in promoting exports, attracting foreign direct investment, and enhancing the competitiveness of California industry. He is the author of numerous op-ed pieces that have appeared in The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the San Francisco Chronicle, and on Salon.com.

In addition to running his own consulting firm, The ClarkStreet Group, O'Connell is affiliated with Beacon Economics (http://www.beaconecon.com/people/j_oconnell.html), a research and consulting firm specializing in the analysis of real estate markets, local economic development, and public and private policy issues.

All of his writings reveal a wry and sometimes caustic sense of humor. They are almost invariably provocative. From time to time, his articles take a humorous tone, including one about selling a Soviet propaganda poster to a future U.S. Supreme Court justice. Others are poignant, such as one written following a visit to the American military cemetery at Belleau Wood in France.

He was the principal co-author of a major study of California's air cargo links to the global economy in 2005. (See: http://cati.csufresno.edu/cab/PDF/Mason_Role-of-Air-Cargo.pdf.)His most recent study, "Taking the Fast Plane to China: An Expanded Role for Air Freight in Increasing California's Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Exports" was published in April 2008 by the Center for Agricultural Business at Fresno State University. (See: http://cati.csufresno.edu/cab/PDF/Taking%20the%20Fast%20Plane%20to%20China%20(4-08).pdf.)

Mr. O'Connell was born in 1947 and grew up on the coast of Maine. He attended Cheverus, a Jesuit preparatory school in Portland, and received his B.A. from the College of the Holy Cross in 1970. He then moved to California to pursue a doctoral degree at the University of California at Davis. He has also studied at the University of Vienna (Institute of European Studies) and at the London School of Economics, where he was a Fulbright Scholar. He currently resides in Sacramento.

References

1. See http://www.labor.ca.gov/panel/pdf/2007_Technical_Advisors.pdf for official roster of advisors.

2. Dan Walters, the noted Sacramento Bee political columnist, referred to Mr. O'Connell "an authentic authority on California's international trade" in his column of April 19, 2006.

External links

*http://www.jockoconnell.com Mr. O'Connell's website, includes links to his published works