Michael M. Cernea

Michael (Mihail) M. Cernea (born 14 October 1931) is a sociologist and anthropologist born in Romania who reestablished himself in the United States in 1974, where he has since lived. He is widely recognized for introducing sociological and anthropological approaches into the World Bank. He worked as the World Bank's Senior Adviser for Sociology and Social Policy until 1997. He has published on a wide range of the effects of development, including social change, social forestry, participation, grassroots organizations, and population resettlement. He is an author of the term "development-induced displacement and resettlement".

Judith Freidenberg reports Cernea as arguing that "Development Anthropology is a Contact Sport".^[1]