Tara Yanez is a PhD Candidate with Tulane’s Roger Thayer Stone Center for Latin American Studies. Her research interests include themes around violence, cultural resistance, justice, gender, and social mobilization in Latin America.
Working in partnership with grassroots organization Fundación Paz y Bien based in Cali, Colombia, Tara co-leads women’s circles with local leaders and organizers to discuss issues of justice and security in neighborhoods with high rates of criminal violence. Based in participatory action research and community-engaged pedagogy, this form of research allows Tara to contribute findings to publications concerning security policy in Latin America while also fortifying Paz y Bien’s restorative justice programming to provide safe spaces for women to express opinions, resolve conflict, overcome past difficulties, and reimagine the futures of their neighborhoods with the support of peers and trained social workers.
