Ana Vivaldi

Ana Vivaldi serves as a Sessional Instructor in the Department of Sociology within the Faculty of Arts at the University of British Columbia (UBC). Her academic work bridges sociology and anthropology, with teaching responsibilities in both departments. She teaches courses including SOCI 220 Sociology of Indigenous People, SOCI 371 Classical Sociological Theories, SOCI 372 Contemporary Sociological Theories, ANTH 316 Political Anthropology, ANTH 378 Media Anthropology, ANTH 480 Urban Ethnographic Field-school, and SOCI 302 Ethnic and Racial Inequalities.

Her research spans Space and Mobility, Racial and Ethnic Politics, Indigenous Politics, Ethnographic Methodologies, Media Anthropology, Development Studies, Gender Studies, Urban Studies, and Latin American Studies. Vivaldi's interdisciplinary approach brings together politics of indigeneity and race to examine the production of space, (im)mobilities, and embodiment, with particular focus on indigenous sovereignties and urban conviviality. She employs ethnographic and visual methodologies to explore how mobility among marginalized populations shapes social and spatial assemblages that challenge subordination.

Her publication record reveals consistent scholarly contributions with a concentration of recent work in 2018. These publications demonstrate a cohesive research trajectory examining Indigenous communities in Argentina, particularly the Toba/Qom people, through lenses of urban migration, digital technology adoption, military service experiences, and spatial practices. Her work frequently intersects Indigenous studies with urban sociology, mobility studies, and postcolonial theory.

• 2014 Margaret Fulton Award. UBC. For outstanding contribution for student development.
• 2010 Bottom Billion Fellowship. Liu Institute. Follow up Field Research.
• 2009 IDRC Ecopolis Graduate Research Award. Field research.
• 2009/2010 Four Year Fellowship. UBC.
• 2008/09 University Graduate Fellowship – UBC.
• 2008 Argentinean National Research Council (CONICET). Phd 3 year Fellowship (Declined because of incompatibility with studies abroad)
• 2007/08 University Graduate Fellowship – University of British Columbia
• 2017-2018 Simons Research Fellow, School for International Studies, SFU

Vivaldi's research has been supported by significant funding sources including the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the Liu Institute for Global Issues, and UBC Graduate Fellowships. Her field research in Argentina, particularly among migrant indigenous people in Buenos Aires, has informed her understanding of spatial mobility and the creation of what she terms 'subaltern assemblages' - informal connections and relations that help confront socioeconomic marginalization and urban segregation. Her collaborative research approach extends to working directly with Toba Indigenous People on publications.

Vivaldi maintains an active research agenda with two current projects: one examining the paradoxical relationship between the Argentinian military's history of violence against Indigenous sovereignty and positive experiences of mandatory military service reported by Toba men, and another investigating the everyday use of new digital technologies by Toba Indigenous youth in Argentina. Her work analyzes how these technologies effect political reconfigurations of both cyber and physical space.