PI: Alan Zarychta, Crown Family School of Social Work
Partner Organizations: University of the Andes, EAFIT University, Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (CIDE)
This project supports the institutionalization and expansion of the Latin American Network on Subnational Governance (LANSUG), a collaborative initiative launched after the inaugural 2023 Latin American Conference on Subnational Governance (LACSUG) in Colombia. With UChicago Global funding, the project will formalize the network’s structure, host a second LACSUG in Mexico City, and build a scholarly community committed to comparative research on hybrid governance and subnational public management across Latin America and the Caribbean. Activities include developing digital infrastructure, organizing a speaker series, supporting early-career scholars, and creating a regional typology of governance strategies to inform future research and funding proposals.
PI: Angela Garcia, Crown Family School of Social Work
Partner Organizations: Colegio de Mexico
This initiative supports a binational exchange between the University of Chicago and the Colegio de Mexico, centered on evolving U.S.–Mexico migration dynamics. In 2025–26, Colegio President Silvia Giorguli will serve as a Tinker Professor at UChicago while Professor Susan Gzesh will undertake a sabbatical in Mexico City. Together, these visits will lay the groundwork for a two-year collaborative research project between the two institutions, enhancing dialogue on migration, policy, and civil society. Building on decades of academic ties and the legacy of the MesoAmerican Migration Project, the initiative will engage leading scholars and contribute to comparative understanding of legal, demographic, and social shifts across borders.
PI: Sonia Hernandez, Department of Surgery
Partner Organizations: Clubes de Ciencia
STEM-Out Mexico is a cross-cultural science outreach initiative that mentors UChicago graduate students and postdocs (Scientists-in-Training) in developing and delivering inquiry-based STEM workshops for high school and college students in Oaxaca, Mexico. In collaboration with Clubes de Ciencia and Mexican institutions, the program pairs UChicago and Mexican trainees to co-teach one-week workshops, provide science cafés for public engagement, and gain international teaching experience rarely available at UChicago. Building on six years of success, the 2025 edition aims to reach up to 125 students through five in-person workshops, advancing science communication, mentorship, and cross-border collaboration in STEM education.
PI: Jessica Baker, Department of Music
Partner Organizations: St. Kitts National Archive and Museum, Caribbean Arts Archive
The Caribbean Arts Archive is a collaborative initiative between the University of Chicago and partners in St. Kitts aimed at revitalizing the island’s under-resourced national archive. Addressing a critical gap in historical preservation and access across the Eastern Caribbean, the project will digitize fragile collections, train local and UChicago students in archival and oral history methods, and mount a public exhibition. By preserving rare records and collecting community narratives, particularly around music and cultural heritage, the initiative fosters intergenerational engagement and cross-border scholarship. Ultimately, it seeks to model sustainable, community-driven archival revitalization across the Caribbean.
PI: Ryan Jobson, Department of Anthropology
Partner Organizations: University of the West Indies
This project facilitates student research and institutional collaboration between the University of Chicago and the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, through a two-part workshop series focused on Caribbean regional archives. A virtual workshop in fall 2025 will guide students in identifying relevant collections and forming pilot research plans, followed by a three-day in-person workshop in spring 2026 featuring archival training, faculty roundtables, and research mentorship. Drawing on archival collections related to slavery, indenture, politics, and culture in Trinidad and Tobago, the initiative strengthens interdisciplinary Caribbean Studies, builds long-term scholarly partnerships, and lays the foundation for future collaborative programming across both institutions.
PI: Jorge Jaramillo, Department of Neurobiology
Partner Organizations: Universidad de Antioquia
This project proposes an international collaboration between the University of Chicago and the Universidad de Antioquia in Medellin, Colombia to enhance early detection of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) through EEG-based biomarkers. Building on the affordability and accessibility of EEG, the project will bridge cellular-level insights with large-scale brain dynamics by developing computational models that simulate AD progression and predict working memory deficits. Activities include exploratory visits, a joint neuroscience workshop in Medellin, and research stays for Colombian students in Chicago, where they will work on model development and data analysis. The collaboration integrates neuroscience, computational modeling, and clinical insight, with the goal of identifying early-stage, non-invasive biomarkers for AD.
PI: Sarah Newman, Department of Anthropology
Partner Organizations: Leiden University
This project investigates the anthropogenic landscape modifications at Topoxté, a Maya site in Guatemala reoccupied in the Postclassic period by the Kowoj people, to determine whether its monumental landscape features stem from Classic-era origins or represent new expressions of Kowoj identity. Moving beyond traditional architectural and ceramic analysis, the project explores how later inhabitants interpreted and reshaped the ruins and natural terrain to inscribe cultural meaning. Building on prior archaeological surveys and collaborations with Dr. Alejandra Roche Recinos and VisualSkies, the team will conduct aerial, terrestrial, and bathymetric lidar surveys in December 2025 to document topographic changes and uncover submerged features. Supported by Alphawood Foundation and proposed Provost’s Global Faculty Award funds, this interdisciplinary initiative will train UChicago and Guatemalan students in cutting-edge remote sensing techniques, while advancing broader conversations about Maya landscape memory, continuity, and innovation.
PI: Jayant Pinto, Department of Surgery
Partner Organizations: IAMSPE
This project builds a novel partnership between UChicago researchers and the PARDoS team at IAMSPE in São Paulo, Brazil to investigate the link between air pollution exposure, olfactory dysfunction, and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Leveraging Brazil’s unique autopsy infrastructure, the collaboration will collect and analyze olfactory tissue from a diverse cohort of older adults (n=200) to assess particulate matter (PM) deposition, gene expression changes, and pathological markers of AD. A two-day conference in October 2025 will formalize the partnership and initiate plans for a large-scale NIH/NIA proposal. By integrating exposure data with neuropathological and molecular analyses in an underrepresented population, the project addresses key gaps in understanding environmental drivers of dementia and sets the stage for transformative cross-national dementia research.
PI: Nhung Nguyen, Department of Surgery
Partner Organizations: Universidad de Santiago de Chile
This collaborative project between the University of Chicago and the Universidad de Santiago de Chile (USACH) aims to develop simplified two- and three-dimensional models to better understand the mechanics behind snap-through instability in endovascular stent deployment, a key factor in the formation of endoleaks. Building on prior computational work showing a nonlinear correlation between stent-aorta geometry mismatch and gap volume, the project will use elastic beam theory and finite element analysis to model how oversize and curvature affect the stability of the stent-aorta interface. By validating theoretical predictions with simulations and extending models to accommodate realistic stent mesh designs, the team seeks to inform the design of next-generation stents that reduce endoleak risk and improve patient outcomes.
PI: Susan Stokes, Department of Political Science
Partner Organizations: Tecnológico de Monterrey, University of Pennsylvania
This proposal outlines a collaborative, comparative study on the legitimacy of direct democracy mechanisms (MDDs) in Mexico and Uruguay. Motivated by democratic backsliding in major countries, the project aims to experimentally assess whether referendums and citizen initiatives yield policy outcomes that are perceived as more legitimate than decisions made by legislatures or executives. Leveraging methodologies from prior European studies, the research will test how different conditions — including origin of the measure (citizen-led vs. government-led), issue type, and decision context — shape public perceptions of legitimacy. Mexico and Uruguay serve as contrasting sites: Mexico has only recently adopted MDDs under President López Obrador, while Uruguay has a longstanding tradition of such mechanisms. In addition to survey experiments, the project will convene an international roundtable of scholars in Mexico City to foster deeper collaboration in the study of participatory democratic practices.