Donna M. Goldstein

Donna M. Goldstein is a Professor of Anthropology at the University of Colorado, Boulder. She holds a B.S. in Rural Sociology from Cornell University, an Ed.M. in Psychology from Harvard Graduate School of Education, and an M.A./Ph.D. in Anthropology from UC Berkeley. Her work focuses on race, gender, poverty, and violence in Brazil, with major contributions to medical anthropology and science studies. She authored Laughter Out of Place (2003), winner of the 2005 Margaret Mead Award, which examines domestic workers in Rio de Janeiro's shantytowns. Currently, she leads research on pharmaceutical politics, Cold War science, and nuclear energy impacts in Brazil, collaborating with the Getúlio Vargas Foundation. She directed the Center to Advance Research and Teaching in the Social Sciences (2012–2016) and serves as Director of the Latin American Studies Center (LASC), organizing initiatives on energy sources' community impacts.

Her research integrates transnational health systems, neoliberalism, and historical analyses of science. Notable projects include investigations into Brazil's Angra nuclear complex and the intersection of corruption with illiberal politics in the Trump era. Goldstein's work bridges ethnography with critical social theory, emphasizing the ethical dimensions of scientific knowledge production and policy-making.

• Educations: Cornell (B.S.), Harvard (Ed.M.), UC Berkeley (M.A./Ph.D.)
• Key Roles: Director of LASC, Former Director of CARTSS
• Research Labs/Teams: Collaborations with Getúlio Vargas Foundation and interdisciplinary energy studies teams

Her publications address topics ranging from nuclear energy ethics to gun control in Brazil, blending historical, anthropological, and political perspectives. Awards include the Eaton Faculty Award (2006–2007) for exceptional scholarship and service.