2016 | Ph.D. in Anthropology,  Stanford University

2009 | M.A. in Anthropology - Archaeology Track, Stanford University

2004 | M.A. in Anthropology - Archaeology Track, Universidad de Los Andes, Colombia

I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Oregon. I was born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia, where I completed my BA and MA in Anthropology and Archaeology at the Universidad de Los Andes. I completed an MA (2009) and PhD (2016) in Anthropology at Stanford University.

I am interested in cultural heritage, race, diversity politics, ethnicity, and inequality in Latin America. Prior to joining the Anthropology Department at the University of Oregon, I was a 2015-2016 Dissertation Fellow in the Department of Black Studies at the University of California Santa Barbara.

Based on multi-sited ethnographic research in Colombia, my current book project “Becoming Heritage: Recognition, Exclusion, and the Politics of Black Cultural Heritage in Colombia” examines the consequences of cultural public policy on marginalized communities and minority groups. Specifically, my research traces how the declaration of cultural practices of Afro-Latino communities as “intangible cultural heritage of humanity” may further marginalize already vulnerable community members and leave structural racial inequities intact. I am particularly interested in understanding how and why certain multicultural policies that are ostensibly inclusive, can end up replicating, rather than dismantling, inequality and segregation across Latin America.

My second major research project is a long term ethnographic and archival study of the way in which the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) is operationalized. Specifically, I am examining how communities are represented within the UNESCO system by tracing the inner workings of non-governmental organizations as governing bodies of the UNESCO 2003 ICH Convention.

My third and most recent project examines how COVID-19 amplifies pre-existing inequalities among faculty members and disproportionally impacts academic caregivers, especially women. I am particularly interested in understanding not only the negative effects the pandemic is having on faculty caregivers, but also in assessing if and how colleges and universities in the United States are able to narrow the long-existing equity gaps now exacerbated by COVID-19.

My research has received support from a variety of sources, including the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the Wenner Gren Foundation, the Social Sciences Research Council, the Fulbright Program, the Mellon Foundation, and the Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard University. My most recent work appears in Cultural Anthropology, the International Journal of Cultural Property and the International Journal of Heritage Studies.

Before starting my doctorate, I worked in sustainable development and heritage policy-making for non-governmental organizations and Colombian public entities, including the Ministry of Culture and Bogotá’s Secretary of Culture and Tourism.

• ANTH 685 | Professional Writing Seminar

The course focuses on developing an effective writing practice while guiding students through the basics of academic writing and publication. Through a combination of directed readings and weekly writing goals, this course provides students time and guidance for completing a substantial academic project, while encouraging reflection on both the process of writing and content of their work.

• ANTH 161 | Introduction to Cultural Anthropology

This course introduces students to basic concepts in Cultural Anthropology. The class educates students on emerging and developing notions of culture as well as the ways in which societies are rapidly changing within a globalizing world and exposes students to a wide variety of cultural practices through ethnographic writing and film.

• ANTH 411/511 | Politics, Ethnicity and Nationalism

This class explores the relationship between ethnicity, politics, and nationalism from anthropological and historical perspectives. We trace a general genealogy of the two main terms, “ethnicity” and “nationalism,” while also addressing the way nationalism and ethnic identity construct and reproduce each other. We analyze recent news articles, films, and media reports related to our core concepts, and examine the meanings and political significance of nationalism and ethnicity today.

• ANTH 441/541 | Recent Cultural Theory

In this course students learn how to use contemporary cultural theory to analyze current anthropological debates. Through a deep engagement with theoretical and ethnographic texts as well as in-class discussions, students practice how to read, critically analyze, and use cultural theory. This class is not designed as a historical survey of anthropological theory. Rather, this course grapples with some of the foundational questions, critical debates and concepts that have been central to our discipline.

• ANTH 311 | Anthropology of Globalization

In this course we explore the promises and contradictions of globalization, and learn to analyze its consequences on our contemporary world. We will identify the opportunities globalization has created and recognize its drawbacks and potential to increase global inequality. Drawing upon theories of globalization, ethnographic research, and contemporary documentary films, this course explores the various effects of globalization and highlights how rather than an abstract theory, globalization affects most aspects of our daily lives.