Mia Hickey

(amelia.hickey@uconn.edu)

Yorlenis Cárdenas Beitia

Yorlenis Cárdenas Beitia, born and raised in Panama, holds a BA in Anthropology from Skidmore College. After completing her undergraduate studies, she worked as an Immigrant Services Specialist in Saratoga Springs, NY, where she focused on advocacy, community development, and providing culturally responsive services to Latin American immigrant families. More recently, she has coordinated photography exhibitions centered on Latin American immigrant experiences and produced multimedia work on queerness, mental health, and grief. At El Instituto, her research interests include the construction of LGBTQ+ identities and experiences in Panama, particularly the ways they are shaped by language, public discourse, and media representation. In addition to her academic work, she is committed to continue expanding her community engagement and program coordination experience as an Engagement Graduate Assistant at the Center for Career Readiness and Life Skills.

Ben Aranda de Planque

(tgx24001@uconn.edu)

Ben Aranda de Planque (they/them/elle) is a first-year M.A. student at El Instituto. They hold a B.A. in Theatre and Latin American Studies from the University of Central Florida. Their research interests lie within Queer Latine culture, Latine theatre, and examining the intersectionality of identity politics.

Javier Garcia

(zag24001@uconn.edu)

Javier J. García Quiñones is a political scientist specializing in international relations, human rights, and social movements. He completed his B.A. in Political Science with a minor in Human Rights at the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus. During his undergraduate years, he engaged in impactful research, including his work with the Puerto Rican Public Opinion Laboratory (LabPOP), and developed expertise in analyzing public opinion data and international legal frameworks. His research interests have focused on how indigenous groups leverage international legal frameworks to assert their rights. He aims to deepen his research on non-state actors and indigenous social movements in Latin America, continuing his focus on how these groups utilize international law to influence political narratives.

Maria Isabel Palacio-Cano

(maria.palacio_cano@uconn.edu)

M. Isabel Palacio-Cano had a B.A. in Pedagogy from the University of Antioquia (Medellin, Colombia). She is a preschool teacher and primary school teacher. Her research interest is in the areas of Cultural studies, Critical Public Pedagogy, Adult learning, Colombian Conflict, and Interdisciplinary Research in Education.

Jhinia Garcia

(jhinia.garcia@uconn.edu)

Jhinia Garcia graduated from the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos (UNMSM, Peru) with a B.A. in Economics. She also got an M.A. in Public Administration from the Universidad San Martin de Porres (USMP, Peru). Previously, she worked as an Analyst in Planning and Budget for Ministerio de Defensa del Perú (MINDEF) and the Organismo Supervisor de la Inversión en Infraestructura de Transporte de Uso Público (OSITRAN). Also, she worked as a Research Assistant in the Marketing Group of the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Her research interests are Behavioral Economics, Health Economics, and Education (relationship between teaching methodologies and motivation).