Christian Dieguez is a Research Analyst at the Berkeley Interdisciplinary Migration Initiative, and a senior at UC Berkeley majoring in Political Science with a minor in Public Policy. Being raised in Los Angeles, California, Christian has become passionate about addressing the historically discriminatory systems that shape the access to opportunities and resources for many individuals. He is particularly interested in creating immigration reform and keeping families together, strengthening our human rights, and investing in early education.
Broadly, my questions focus on the dynamics of recognition and belonging in contexts of protracted displacement. I am particularly interested in how the recognition of shared internal markers of selfhood—such as dreams, aspirations, and vulnerabilities—can emerge through relational encounters between individuals with distinct traditional identities. Such encounters, I suggest, hold the potential to cultivate forms of belonging that transcend conventional in-group boundaries. More specifically, my inquiry focuses on two relatively understudied phenomena: (1) relational forms of...
Daniela Arreola is a Research Analyst with the Berkeley Interdisciplinary Migration Initiative (BIMI) and a student at UC Berkeley, pursuing a degree in Public Health. She is passionate about social determinants of health, health equity, community engagement, and environmental health. Daniela’s interest in immigration research stems from her familial background of Mexican and Peruvian immigrants, as well as a strong academic background in how institutions, policy decisions, and racism shape health outcomes. At BIMI, Daniela hopes to deepen her knowledge of community health...
Julio Adrián Cedillo is a Research Analyst at the Berkeley Interdisciplinary Migration Initiative (BIMI) and a fourth-year undergraduate in the Department of Sociology at UC Berkeley. Before pursuing his bachelor’s, Julio earned two associate degrees in Sociology and Chicana/o Studies at San Diego City College. His interest in immigration research stems from his involvement in political organizations based in Barrio Logan, San Diego, during his time as a community college student. His research interests include Latinx sociology, political sociology, and economic sociology....
Dr. Yannick Coenders is a historical sociologist of race, space, and politics. His research agenda interrogates how race persists and continues to shape the social life of populations on both sides of the Atlantic, despite the global decline of institutions that brought it into being, such as European colonialism, slavery, and de jure segregation. Coenders’ research has been published in the American Journal of Cultural Sociology, Antipode, Public Culture, and the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies.
His current book project, Dispersal: Governing Against...
Lena Ramos is a Research Analyst with the Berkeley Interdisciplinary Migration Initiative (BIMI) and a student at UC Berkeley, pursuing degrees in Legal Studies and Society and Environment on the pre-law track. She is passionate about immigration law, policy, and reform, with a particular focus on Latin American communities. Her academic interests are rooted in her dedication to advocacy and humanitarian aid.
Lena serves as a Staff Editor for the California Legal Studies Journal, Co-Director of Finance for the Berkeley...
Angelica Remache Lopez is a Ph.D. student at the University of California, Berkeley Department of Political Science, specializing in Comparative Politics, Political Economy, and Methods. Her research interests focus on migration, economic development, and corruption. She is particularly interested in the Latin American region, where her research has examined how political corruption may incentivize emigration; the impact of youth unemployment on migration; and the effects of government performance on economic and human development. She employs a mixed-methods approach in her research...
Michele Tan is a Master of Advanced Study in Engineering student at UC Berkeley whose research sits at the intersection of using AI and technology for environmental justice, health equity and access, policy, and immigrant health outcomes. Her work focuses on how environmental toxicants and systemic inequities in healthcare access shape migrant well-being, particularly for youth and families navigating displacement.
As co-founder of Kultevat Org, Michele advances plant-based innovations that address both climate and health inequities. She has published peer-reviewed...
UC Berkeley Law School & Energy and Resources Group
MJ Wong Engel is a joint MS/JD student in the Energy and Resources Group and Law School, interested in the intersecting challenges between climate change and migration. Drawing on legal geography, spatial analysis, landscape ethnography, and legal analysis, MJ studies the legal limbo faced by climate-displaced peoples and how the climate crisis shapes migration journeys. MJ's goal is to develop interdisciplinary frameworks that advance more just advocacy and policy.
