Christian Zlolniski

Dr. Christian Zlolniski is a Professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at The University of Texas at Arlington, and former Director of the Center for Mexican American Studies (2013–2022). He holds a PhD from the University of California, Santa Barbara, specializing in Cultural Anthropology. His research focuses on globalization, transnational migration, and labor studies with an emphasis on Mexican borderlands and immigrant communities. Key works include Janitors, Street Vendors, and Activists (2006) and Made in Baja (2019), examining labor conditions in Silicon Valley and Baja California's agricultural industry.

His research explores the social and ecological impacts of export agriculture on Indigenous farmworkers in Baja California, labor migration, and water resource management. Notable grants include NSF-funded projects on labor implications in natural resource commodification (2021–2025) and Indigenous labor in Baja's agroindustry (2009–2013). He has advised numerous graduate students on topics like H-2B visa workers and Mexican farm labor.

Zlolniski has received the Academy of Distinguished Service Leaders (2022) and Distinguished Record of Research (2022) awards. He teaches courses on Latino communities, globalization, and Mexican American studies. His outreach includes roles with Proyecto Inmigrante and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board's Mexican American Studies committee.