Stone Center for Latin American Studies - Tulane University

08/21/2026

Maia Edwards, a PhD student in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, spent six weeks in northwestern Ecuador conducting field research with Fundación para la Conservación de los Andes Tropicales (FCAT). Working alongside two locally employed community members, Maia visited 30 field sites as part of FCAT’s long-term biodiversity monitoring project. At each site, they conducted “playback” experiments to observe how birds responded to different species in different habitats. They also collected various habitat measurements, including canopy height, density, and the number of large and fruiting trees.

Additionally, they conducted a sound attenuation experiment at each audio recording location of the site by playing tones from different distances. These data will help train an automated bird detection model by sound and account for habitat differences that may influence sound recognition.

Maia also spent her time in the field assisting with other FCAT initiatives, such as their long-term bird-banding project.

Maia´s summer fieldwork was supported by a Tinker Foundation Summer Field Research Grant.

08/17/2026

Maryluna Santos, a PhD student in Art History and Latin American Studies at Tulane, is curating an exhibition with materials from Special Collections, along with special loans from the Doris Z. Stone Latin American Library and Research Center.

The upcoming exhibition, "As Light as Paper, As Firm as Stone", explores the connections between books and the built environment during the hand-press era.

Last week, Santos had the opportunity to visit the workshop of artist and Caroll Gallery curator, Laura Richens, to learn more about printing techniques for the exhibition.

Save the date!
An opening reception for "As Light as Paper, As Firm as Stone" will take place Friday, September 11, 11 am–1 pm, Special Collections, Second Floor Gallery, Jones Hall.

08/04/2026

MA student Omayra Peña Jimenez has spent the past month doing fieldwork for her project, “The Politics of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining in Latin America: A comparative case study in Peru and Colombia.” The results of this fieldwork, which involved visiting mining towns, conducting interviews, and speaking with various actors in Arequipa, Peru, and Antioquia, Colombia, are part of a long-term research project and will be included in her master's thesis. The time spent in Peru and Colombia has provided insight into the distinct development of ASM in each country and in subnational cases, as well as into the challenges faced by miners, territories, and states.

Omayra received the Tinker Foundation Summer Field Research Grant to conduct this research.

08/03/2026

Jason Nesbitt, Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology, appeared on the podcast The Ancients in an episode titled "Caral: Oldest City in the Americas?"

Listen to the episode here:

Listen to Caral: Oldest City in the Americas? from The Ancients. Long before the age of the Inca and Maya, a remarkable city once flourished on the coast of modern Peru. Founded more than five thousand years ago, the sacred city of Caral is home to monumental pyramids, lavish temples and one of the....

08/03/2026

Hello everyone! My name is Sylvette Dupé-Vété-Congolo, and I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of French and Italian, specializing in the critical thought, culture, and literature of Black Francophone communities across the Atlantic.

This summer, I have been immersed in producing a series of short documentaries and podcasts on Fwomajé, a collective of Martinican artists whose work between the 1970s and 1990s played a pivotal role in shaping a distinctly Martinican philosophy and practice of art. These photos offer a glimpse into this journey, capturing moments from our working sessions and showcasing some of the remarkable artists I had the privilege of interviewing. I look forward to sharing the finished project with you soon. Stay tuned!

Sylvette Dvc
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Bonjour tout le monde,
Je m'appelle Sylvette Dupé-Vété-Congolo. Je suis doctorante dans le département d’études françaises et italiennes et je me spécialise dans la pensée critique, la littérature et la culture en français à travers le monde atlantique noir. Cet été, je fais une série de documentaires et de podcasts sur le groupe artistique Fwomajé, un collectif d’artistes martiniquais ayant œuvré dans les années 80 et 90 pour constituer une pensée et une pratique de l'art singulièrement martiniquais. Les photos illustrent les séances de travail avec les artistes que j'ai eu l’honneur d'interviewer. Restez à l’écoute pour la suite!!

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Bonjou tout moun,
Mwen sé Sylvette Dupé-Vété-Congolo. Mwen ka fè an doktora adan département d’études françaises et italiennes linivèsité Tulanep a bò Lalwizyan. Man ka travay asou lapansé kritik, litérati épi mès moun nèg ka palé fransé oliwon Lakarayib. Pandan mwa jwiyé épi mwa out-la, mwen fè vidéyo épi pòdcas asou Fwomajé, an kolèktif atis Matinik ki, pabò 1970-1990, travay pou mété doubout an manniyè wè épi fè lapenti épi lézar fondal Matinik. Sé foto-a ka montré dé twa ti-moman travay nou ansanm épi sé atis-la mwen trapé lonnè pozé yonn dé kèsyon. Mwen présé fini travay ta-la toubannman !! Man ka mandé zòt rété véyatif asou sa. I pòkò fini!!!!!!!!

07/23/2026

Art History & Latin American Studies PhD student Sarah Brokenborough spent part of her summer in Jamaica examining nineteenth-century Jamaican art and crafts.

Supported by the Tulane Global Humanities Center’s Global South Fellowship, the Stone Center’s Summer Fieldwork Research Grant, and the Newcomb Art Department’s Joyce Frank Menschel Research Grant, Sarah conducted archival research in Kingston and Spanish Town, and visited the Rose Hall Great House and the Montego Bay Cultural Centre.

In Kingston, she also presented her paper, “Visible Labor, Valued Work: Enslaved Girls’ Needlework on Jamaican Plantations,” at the Association of Caribbean Historians’ 57th Annual Conference. Sarah presented a version of the paper during a recent works-in-progress session hosted by the Newcomb Art Department.

“I’d like to say thank you to my advisors Prof. Anagnost, Prof. Adderley, Prof. Yeboah, and Prof. Mia Bagneris for their insights and support!” - Sarah Brokenborough

Swipe through to see highlights of Sarah’s experience!

1. Sarah holds a Jamaican lace-bark doily from the Institute of Jamaica/Natural History Museum of Jamaica’s collection.

2. Sarah with her fellow panelists at the Association of Caribbean Historians’ 57th Annual Meeting.

(Left to Right: Dr. Gelien Matthews, Chair; Zakiya Doyle, PhD Student at UWI Cave Hill; Sarah Brokenborough; Taylar Carty, PhD Student at the University of Glasgow).

Photo Credit: Janice Mayers.

3. Sarah joined the Plants, Enslavement and Public History’s week-long Creative Methods Workshop. She and fellow participants visited the Natural History Museum of Jamaica for a tour led by Curator and Botanist Dr. Keron Campbell.

The workshop was organized and hosted by Dr. Zakiya McKenzie, writer, cultural historian, and Senior Research Associate at the University of Bristol, and was funded by the United Kingdom Research & Innovation (UKRI) Future Leaders Fellowship.

4. Sarah holds a piece of mahogany cut from one of the trees surrounding the Rose Hall Great House.

5. At the Jamaica Archives & Records Department in Spanish Town, Sarah holds a straw basket (c. 1910) made at the Belmont Orphanage in Stony Hill, Kingston.

07/20/2026

🇧🇷 Last week marked the end of the Summer in Brazil 6-week program. For the farewell dinner, students, their Brazilian roommates, and the CET team went to O Paquim Bar e Prosa in Vila Madalena to celebrate the end of the course in São Paulo.

07/16/2026

I’m Jenny Nguyen, a rising junior studying Finance and Real Estate, with a minor in Legal Studies. As part of the Tulane Interdisciplinary Environmental Research & Action (TIERA) Scholar’s Track and in partnership with the non-profit organization, Fundación para la Conservación de los Andes Tropicales (FCAT), I traveled to the Chocó rainforest, a protected reserve in Ecuador, to do field research.

My goal was to understand the cacao business in Ecuadorian regions, factoring in the current economic conditions the local farmers are facing while being left to make sustainable environmental decisions. By comparing sun-grown and shade-grown cacao production through economic modeling and conducting in-person interviews, this project seeks to find conditions where sustainable cacao can be financially feasible for farmers while remaining environmentally sound.

During my time at the station, I worked alongside FCATeros and cacao professionals, and interviewed multiple sources, including local farmers, cacao intermediaries, potential clients, competitors, and other similar commodity markets, such as coffee intermediaries in the area. From the volatile cacao markets, the process of cacao production, the history of the plant, to basic economic concepts such as supply and demand, it was really interesting and such an amazing experience getting to sit down, hear stories and learn from the farmers. The interviews I conducted reminded me of the reason why I wanted to do this research in the first place—the socioecological impact of it.

At the end of my trip, I had the pleasure of presenting my findings to everyone at the station! I will use the data collected, the feasibility model for FCAT, the research report, and presentation as part of my honors thesis, “Environmental and Economic Tradeoffs in Cacao Production: A Feasibility Model and Cost Analysis of Sun-Grown versus Shade-Grown Cacao Systems,” which I am currently writing. I look forward to publishing my findings for others to read and I am very grateful for all of the support I’ve had along the way.

07/10/2026

PhD student Brenda Borges started her summer by attending the Latin American Studies Association (LASA) conference in Paris, where she presented for the first time with her paper titled “Fit for God: Gym Culture and Spiritual Discipline in Brazil.” She will also be presenting her research at BRASA in Brazil soon.

Brenda is also spending her summer between Feira de Santana, Salvador, and São Paulo, researching the connections between religion and fitness. Swipe through the pictures Brenda shared from her stay in Feira de Santana, showcasing everyday life, regional identity, music, commerce, and the cultural heritage that continues to shape the region.

“Being back in my home region while conducting research has allowed me to see familiar places through new eyes and connect my personal experiences with my academic work.”