Center for Latin American Studies at the University of Arizona

Tinker Symposium

5th Annual Tinker Symposium on Graduate Field Research in Latin America

Date: Thursday, October 29^th
Time: Student Panels 8:30am-4:30pm, Keynote Speaker 4:30-5:45
Where: Marriott University Park Hotel

For a PDF of the complete program, click here.

With grant money from the Tinker Foundation, the University of Arizona funded over 25 graduate students from 7 departments across campus to conduct original research in Latin America this past summer. The University and Tucson community are invited to come and listen to students’ research experiences and outcomes on October 29th at the Marriott University Park Hotel.

Graduate students will discuss their field experiences in 11 countries, from Mexico to Argentina. This year's research topics span multiple disciplines, and address issues such as politics and the environment, immigration and identity, and development and public health.  Student presentations will begin, following a brief introduction, at 8:30am. For a complete listing of student topics and presentations, visit: http://clas.arizona.edu/tinker/symposium

Neill Prohaska, a Latin American Studies and Journalism graduate student, traveled to Bolivia to study the impacts of fair-trade certification on cacao farmers. “I am grateful for the amazing opportunity I was given to do field research in Latin America. Funding from the Tinker Foundation allowed me to gain insight into both special certification in agriculture and cooperative organization in rural Bolivian communities.”

This year's keynote speaker is Dr. Kevin Healy, an adjunct professor of International Affairs at George Washington University and a grant officer at the Inter-American Foundation. Dr. Healy is the author of two books and multiple book chapters, covering topics such as indigenous movements and development in Bolivia and the drug industry in the Andes. His talk, entitled “Popular Participation and Rural Development: Comparative Perspectives on Recent Experiences in Bolivia and Colombia” will begin at 4:30pm.  A free reception will follow, to which the public is welcome to attend.

The Tinker Symposium is organized by the UA Center for Latin American Studies. The Tinker Foundation was created in 1959 with the focus on providing funding for research possibilities in Latin America, Spain and Portugal. Additional funding is provided by the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, College of Humanities, College of Public Health, the Vice President for Research, International Affairs and the Center for Latin American Studies.