December 2024 Newsletter

Dear Latin Americanist Community,

   The results of the recent election cast potential dark clouds over the future of international education. I’m an optimist by disposition and I’m sure that we can make a strong case about the importance of area and global studies to policy makers in the new administration and Congress. We are facing challenging junctures but also new opportunities, including the arrival of Dr. Julio Frenk, UCLA’s first Latin American Chancellor. We hope that Dr. Frenk’s tenure brings renewed attention to Latin America Studies to campus. Latin America is indeed a real-life laboratory for transformations that will affect the future of human societies everywhere, from climate change to large scale migrations to global geopolitical realignments—and we need to pay close attention to developments unfolding there. Throughout its nearly 65 years of existence, the LAI has been a catalyst for knowledge production on Latin America, and, with your help, we plan to continue fulfilling that essential role for UCLA, our Southern California community, and the world.

This brings me to the vital need to support the mission of the Latin American Institute, particularly during these uncertain times. December 3rd is Giving Tuesday, and I invite all of you to donate to the Latin American Institute and its three existing funds, the LAI General Fund, the LAI California Community Engagement Fund, and the Graduate Training and Research on Latin America Fund. Your generous contributions make possible the amazing public programming we put together with our many partners on campus and beyond, the seminars and workshops we offer to K-12 teachers, and the grants we give graduate students as they train to become the next generation of Latin Americanists.

Finally, all of us at the Latin American Institute wish you a restful and restorative end of the year break, hoping for a peaceful, just, and productive 2025.

Rubén Hernández-León,
Director of the UCLA Latin American Institute