BY CHARLES R. HALE I take this opportunity—the last Portal produced under my directorship—to offer a few words of thanks, an expression of excitement for the future, and some reflections on the past seven years. By the time this Portal reaches your hands, Professor Virginia Garrard-Burnett will … [Read more...] about Departing Reflections: Charles R. Hale
Features
García Márquez’s Pentimenti
BY JOSÉ MONTELONGO On the morning of November 24, 2014, The New York Times published the news that The University of Texas at Austin had acquired the papers of Nobel laureate Gabriel García Márquez. A few months earlier, Stephen Enniss, director of the university’s Harry Ransom Center, and … [Read more...] about García Márquez’s Pentimenti
A Tale of Two Tomatoes: The Fair Food Program as a New Paradigm of Social Responsibility
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT BY SEAN SELLERS In December, the Los Angeles Times published a searing exposé on the grinding poverty and rampant human rights abuses faced by workers in the Mexican tomato industry. Over the last decade, Mexican farm exports to the U.S. have tripled to nearly $8 billion … [Read more...] about A Tale of Two Tomatoes: The Fair Food Program as a New Paradigm of Social Responsibility
Masculinity and Gender in Kaqchikel Sololá, Guatemala
BY RIGOBERTO AJCALÓN CHOY “The law is giving many freedoms to women,” notes an interviewee with some dismay when I ask him about the current status of indigenous women in the rural Guatemalan town of Kaqchikel Sololá. This response exemplifies men’s reactions to the slow but steady pace at which … [Read more...] about Masculinity and Gender in Kaqchikel Sololá, Guatemala
Politics or Fish? What the Normalization of Cuba–U.S. Relations Means for Food
BY SARA LAW My fieldwork and the last year of my master’s research occurred during a remarkable time in Cuban politics and Cuba–U.S. relations. On December 17, 2014, President Barack Obama announced a shift in policy toward normalizing relations between Cuba and the United States: Today, the … [Read more...] about Politics or Fish? What the Normalization of Cuba–U.S. Relations Means for Food
Geoclimatic Hazards and Environmental Disasters in Latin America: Human Dimensions and Future Challenges
BY EDGARDO LATRUBESSE Latin America is often treated as a single socio-cultural entity by the international community. This generalist view has permeated disaster analysis, resulting in oversimplification of the complex environmental realities at play in different parts of the region. … [Read more...] about Geoclimatic Hazards and Environmental Disasters in Latin America: Human Dimensions and Future Challenges
Going Local: Understanding Chinese Transnational Hydroelectric Projects in Ecuador
BY RUIJIE PENG Over the past decade, China and Latin America have experienced exponential growth in trade and direct investment. China is now the second largest source of imports and the second largest export destination for Latin American goods, behind only the United States in both trade and … [Read more...] about Going Local: Understanding Chinese Transnational Hydroelectric Projects in Ecuador
