Carolina S. Sarmiento

Carolina S. Sarmiento is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil Society & Community Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s School of Human Ecology. Her work focuses on urban development, governance, and cultural spaces in working-class communities of color, emphasizing grassroots responses to inequality and injustice. She collaborates with organizations like VOCES de la Frontera to address issues facing essential workers and immigrant communities.

Education:

• PhD in Planning, Policy and Design from the University of California, Irvine
• MA and BA in Urban Planning and World Arts and Culture from the University of California, Los Angeles

Research Interests: Urban displacement, spatial justice, immigrant rights, community-based participatory action research (CBPAR), and transformative alternatives to systemic inequality. Her projects include analyzing commercial gentrification, sanctuary planning, and labor rights in Santa Ana, California.

Collaborations: Engages with organizations such as the School for Workers, Chican@ & Latin@ Studies, and the Wisconsin Immigrant-Serving Organizations Project. Current projects include a CBPAR initiative with VOCES de la Frontera to improve health and safety for essential workers in Wisconsin.

Awards/Grants: No awards explicitly listed, but her research is supported through institutional collaborations and community partnerships.

Labs/Teams: Affiliated with the Department of Planning and Landscape Architecture and leads interdisciplinary initiatives bridging academia and grassroots activism.