Central American Studies Commons^™

Diabetes And Hypertension Frequencies And Trends In The Health Districts Of Sololá, Alejandro Cerón, Sophie Perfetto, Ana Textor, Sidona Alemayehu, Emilia Alvear Escobar, Adele Beard, Sarah Berson, Rachel Bryant, Jennifer Calzontzi, Rylee Castro, Eva Cress Palencia, Jake Czarnecki, Jordyn Epstein, Nikki Harris, Patience Hinojos, Max Hippisley, Erin House, Jackson Hullett, Nathan Johnson, Amelie King, Saule Lankelyte, Juan Loya, Ashley Mackenzie, Ilana Mighdoll, Molly Morrill, Maria De Jesus Ramos Jimenez, Lilly Teklemedhin, Joseph Trujillo, Lauren Verachtert, Nathan Verachtert, Violet Vreeland, Alex Welch, Jada Wright

Anthropology: Undergraduate Student Scholarship

This report was prepared by the students, Graduate Teaching Assistants, and instructor of “The Social Determination of Health” class taught in the fall of 2025 at the University of Denver. The report was prepared for Dr. Luis Pablo Méndez, of the Vice Ministry of Health Regulation, Surveillance and Control, of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance of Guatemala. The work used the following guiding question: How can available data about service production can be used to inform the planning process for the implementation of the Global Hearts Initiative’s HEARTS technical package in the Distrito de Redes Integradas de …

Transitional Justice: Understanding The Impact Of The Initiatives In Bosnia-Herzegovina And Guatemala, Rachel Bienstock

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

This thesis examines the impact of transitional justice initiatives on reconciliation and healing in regions that have experienced mass atrocities, with a focus on Guatemala and Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). While transitional justice processes aim to address the legacies of human rights violations and foster sustainable peace, their impact varies significantly depending on the context and the mechanisms employed. By analyzing existing scholarship and using a case study methodology to gather in-depth data about each instance, this research explores how different approaches to transitional justice can serve a diverse group of communities and how different factors contribute to their success. …

Deportation And Immigration Enforcement In The United States: Analysis Of Regional And Country Variations, Exmond Ofori Sarpiah

Political Science Theses and Capstones

This study examines the motivations behind President Trump’s mass deportation policies due to the inflow of undocumented migrants from different regions in America. The study employs data visualization techniques, such as scatter plot and bar charts, to analyze regional and country variation trends in migrant removals and undocumented populations across global regions.

The Challenge Of Regulating Pharmaceutical Clinical Trials In The 21st Century With A Focus On Guatemala, Alejandro Cerón, Antonio Ricafort, Carter Saccocio, Maria Delmonte, Jordan Vasquez, Amarri Bishop, Julia Atwood, Addison Bucsko, Jordan Lewis, Alexandra Welch, Itzael Garcia, Ella Wald, Selena Johnson, Crystal Jin, Talya Riciputi, Lindsey Speer, Vanessa Udo-Obong, Soren Engberg, Tessa Lindstrom

Anthropology: Undergraduate Student Scholarship

This report was prepared by the students and instructor of the "Right to Health in Theory and Practice" class taught in the fall of 2024 at the University of Denver. The report was prepared for the Vice Ministry of Health Regulation, Surveillance and Control of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance of Guatemala. The work used the following guiding question: What can a country like Guatemala do to regulate international pharmaceutical clinical trials in the context of research commercialization? In other words, the work was guided by three important elements. First, the regulatory aspect of clinical trials. Second, …

Enhancing Refugee Resettlement And Displaced Population Support Through Elder Communities In The United States: A Model For Sustainable Solutions, Ponnaka Pok

Master's Theses

This thesis paper is inspired by the current world crisis of exploding numbers of refugees and the obstacles they face seeking somewhere to resettle. We present here an effort to address these pressing issues and to advocate for meaningful change. This paper explores the challenges and opportunities associated with refugee resettlement and displaced population issues in the United States. It investigates how Elder communities might play a pivotal role in addressing these challenges and offers a trial model for implement and continued development, and potentially for other countries and organizations to follow. This paper also has a secondary focus on …

Essays On The Application And Improvement Of The Geographical Economics Models To Policy Analysis: The Case Of Road Infrastructure In Central America, Ignacio Penagos

Economics Theses and Dissertations

The novel models of Geographical Economy have analyzed the effects on the distribution of economic activity over the area of a given region, generated by different socio-economic shocks. For example, the costs of migrating from one place to another, as shown in Desmet et al. (2018). A key advantage of such models is that, given the structural definition of the market interactions, they can first create counterfactual scenarios based on the economic fundamentals. And second, a broad set of variables can account for that impact. These dynamic spatial general equilibrium models embody features such as measures for amenities, trade and …

Historical Trauma: Literary And Testimonial Responses To Hiroshima, Mariam Ghonim

Theses and Dissertations

The concept of trauma is controversial in literature. While one may be able to come up with ways to describe trauma in fiction, representing historical trauma is a hard task for writers. Some argue that trauma can not be described through those who did not experience it, while others claim that, provided some elements are added, one can represent trauma to the reader. This thesis focuses on twentieth-century historical traumas related to a nuclear catastrophe and explores the different literary and testimonial responses to the catastrophic man-made event of Hiroshima (1945). In this thesis, Kathleen Burkinshaw’s historical fiction The Last …

Positive Out Of The Negative: Tracking Renewable Energy Projects In Central America, Jordan Ethan Castillo (Miner)

Master's Theses

Central America is undertaking a vast Renewable Energy (RE) transition, due to widespread investments across the region in an array of technologies. These technologies include Community Solar, Wind, and Hydroelectricity. Hydroelectricity has long been the backbone of many countries’ energy grids in the region due to the region’s long history with hydroelectricity. Ambitious climate goals coupled with diminishing hydroelectric power generation opportunities have led to an expansion of investment in Community Solar and Wind energy. The embrace of Solar and Wind has been accelerated due to declining costs for these technologies as they mature. Central America as a case study …

Environmental And Social Factors Associated With High Chronic Kidney Disease Mortality Rates In Municipalities Of Guatemala: An Ecological Study Of Municipal-Level Mortality Data, Alejandro Cerón

Anthropology: Faculty Scholarship

The purpose of this study was to determine the association between social and environmental indicators and high mortality rates from chronic kidney disease (CKD) in municipalities of Guatemala. An ecological study of municipal-level factors associated with CKD mortality in Guatemala was conducted. Crude mortality rates were calculated for the 2009–2019 period for each of the country’s 340 municipalities, by gender and age groups. Municipal-level social and environmental indicators were used as independent variables. Linear regression was used for bivariate and multivariate analysis. A total of 28,723 deaths from CKD were documented for the 2009–2019 period. Average crude mortality rate for …

Fixing Prior Consultation For Indigenous Empowerment, Marcela Torres-Wong, Elia Méndez-García

The Journal of Social Encounters

Over the last three decades, extractive conflicts in Latin America have become increasingly violent. Hundreds of Indigenous activists have been murdered for defending their land against extractive interests. The international formula for addressing this type of conflict is for governments to conduct prior consultation procedures with Indigenous communities before affecting indigenous territories. However, the misuse of consultations by governments and companies to legitimize ecologically destructive projects has led a sector of Indigenous organizations to reject prior consultation, while others continue advocating for free, prior, and informed consent. We compare two cases of Indigenous communities from Oaxaca and Yucatán in Mexico …

Understanding Costa Rica's Response To The Covid-19 Pandemic: Competing Explanations, Lise Charles

The Journal of International Relations, Peace Studies, and Development

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have major impacts on the world, careful study of successful health systems is essential. Costa Rica has been identified as a country that has responded well to the pandemic with the proportion of death rates compared to infection rates being the lowest in comparison to other countries in Central America. This paper examines Costa Rica’s relatively successful response to the COVID-19 pandemic as a case study in good public healthcare management. This study also highlights the importance of theory for addressing urgent, practical development challenges to explore what theoretical frameworks can best explain the …

Conflicts Over Extractivist Policy And The Forest Frontier In Central America, Anthony Bebbington, Laura Sauls, Herman Rosa, Benjamin Fash, Denise Humphreys Bebbington

Sustainability and Social Justice

Central America is characterized by an asymmetric forest transition in which net deforestation is a product of both forest loss and patches of forest resurgence. Forest loss is also associated with rights violations. We explore the extent to which extractive industry and infrastructure investments create pressure on forest resources, community rights and livelihoods. Drivers of this investment are identified, in particular: constitutional, legislative and regulatory reforms; energy policies; new financial flows; and ideas of development emphasizing the centrality of infrastructure in combining geographical integration and economic growth. We discuss forms of contentious action that have emerged in response to these …

A Centrist Solution To Central American Violence And Inequality, Devin Joshi

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The northern triangle of Central America (El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras) has experienced horrific violence, poverty, and a vicious cycle of human rights violations for decades. Repeated natural disasters and the re-routing of the drug trade through Central America are not helping the situation. On the other hand, nearby Costa Rica has achieved a much higher standard of human rights, public safety, and political stability. Why? Costa Rica has put in place four pillars of development and stability lacking in most other countries in the region: a stronger state, an educated population, inter-racial cooperation, and a more inclusive democracy. For …

June Roundtable: Human Rights In Central America, Introduction, Claudia Fuentes

Human Rights & Human Welfare

An annotation of:

“The Tormented Isthmus ”. The Economist. April 14 2011.

The Hearts And Minds Of The Citizens, Brooke Ackerly

Human Rights & Human Welfare

If the US contributes increased military support to Guatemala under the premise of curtailing the drug trade, it could inadvertently further destabilize this already politically unstable country. It certainly will not contribute to developing a sense of political alliance in the hearts and minds of its citizens. Concerns about destabilization in Guatemala (and Central America more generally) and the role of this destabilization in facilitating the drug trade have led the Economist to suggest that the solution is to increase military foreign aid to Guatemala.

Generic Wish-Lists For State-Centric Policies, Edzia Carvalho

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The Central America depicted in the article under review resembles a region visited by the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse—colonial Conquest, civil War, Famine and other natural disasters, and poverty, disease and Death. Added to this list of woes are the recent drug-fueled conflict, democratic instability, weak state capacity, and the socio-economic fallout of the economic recession in the United States. While the first half of the article records these problems, the author shifts gears in the second half and provides an array of responses to these challenges, with a forceful recommendation that states in the region focus their efforts …

Conflict Resolution Agenda: Approaching Its Expiration Date, Jonas Claes

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Conflict resolution scholars and policy-makers have traditionally prioritized research and policy measures dealing with political violence, treating criminal violence as a contextual factor in their analysis or as a subordinate policy concern. One may wonder why the value of a casualty differs depending on whether the fatal blow was caused by a tank, a gang knife, or even a typhoon. The prioritization of political violence over criminal violence seems morally unjustified considering that the killing rates in Guatemala and El Salvador are higher now than during the civil wars that ended in the 1990s. Despite similarities in the causes, manifestations, …

Steve C. Ropp On Human Rights In Latin America: A Politics Of Terror And Hope. By Sonia Cardenas. Philadelphia, Pa: University Of Pennsylvania Press, 2010. 256pp., Steve C. Ropp

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Human Rights in Latin America: A Politics of Terror and Hope. By Sonia Cardenas. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2010. 256pp.

Rights And Rebuilding In El Salvador: A Case Study In Two Parts, Elaine K. Denny, Susan Waltz

Human Rights & Human Welfare

In January 2007, on the 15th anniversary of the signing of the peace accords that ended 12 years of civil war and grave human rights violations in El Salvador, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon praised El Salvador as a model for other countries emerging from conflict: “The groundbreaking accords signed in Mexico City in January 1992 not only set El Salvador on a new course. They also provided precedents and experiences that continue to inspire others who are striving to rebuild their societies following conflict. And they continue to be a point of reference for the United Nations, as we …

Teaching Notes: Rights And Rebuilding In El Salvador, Elaine K. Denny, Susan Waltz

Human Rights & Human Welfare

We have prepared this two-part case study with two pedagogical purposes in mind: (1) To develop an understanding of the concept (and political meaning) of human rights. (2) To facilitate discussion about processes of reconciliation and reconstruction and the importance of holistic conceptions of rights and security for future stability.

© Elaine K. Denny & Susan Waltz. All rights reserved.

This paper may be freely circulated in electronic or hard copy provided it is not modified in any way, the rights of the author not infringed, and the paper is not quoted or cited without express permission of the author. …

Forced Child Labor In El Salvador: Contemporary Economic Servitude, Michelle Doherty

Human Rights & Human Welfare

In 2005, over half of the rural population in El Salvador was living on less than U.S. $2 dollars per day (Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo 2003: 42). The harsh reality of economic subsistence obligates children in El Salvador to contribute to their family’s survival. Employers providing this frail economic lifeline inevitably acquire control over the children. This economic control is a prominent aspect of contemporary slavery and is manifested through violence or exploitation. The enslavement of children in El Salvador not only steals their youth and opportunity to receive an education, but it also places innocent …

Human Rights And The War On Terror: Complete 2005 - 2007 Topical Research Digest, Jack Donnelly, Simon Amajuru, Susannah Compton, Robin Davey, Syd Dillard, Amanda Donahoe, Charles Hess, Sydney Fisher, Kelley Laird, Victoria Lowdon, Chris Maggard, Alexandra Nichols, Travis Ning, Toni Panetta, Greg Sanders, James Smithwick, Angela Woolliams, Chris Saeger, Sarah Bania-Dobyns, Eric Dibbern, David Gillespie, Latife Bulur, Katie Friesen, Arika Long, Arianna Nowakowski, Joel R. Pruce

Human Rights & Human Welfare

“9/11 changed everything.” Not really. In fact, there has been far more continuity than change over the past six years in both international and domestic politics. Nonetheless, human rights often have been harmed—although not by terrorism but by “the war on terror.”