Maria Cruz-Torres

Maria Cruz-Torres is an Associate Professor in the School of Transborder Studies at Arizona State University (ASU), with affiliations to the Center for Biodiversity Outcomes, the Humanities for the Environment Global Network, and the Water Institute. She is also a Senior Global Futures Scientist. Her research focuses on socio-cultural anthropology, particularly gender, globalization, and environmental sustainability in Latin America and the Caribbean. Dr. Cruz-Torres holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology from Rutgers University (1991).

Research Interests: Political ecology, gender dynamics in resource exploitation, fisheries and aquaculture development, and the socio-economic impacts of globalization. Her work emphasizes the interplay between state policies, transnational economies, and local communities in coastal regions.

Awards: Fellow of the Royal Anthropological Institute (2020), AAAS Fellow (2017), Society for Applied Anthropology Fellow (2007), and multiple research awards from institutions like the University of California and Victoria Foundation.

Teaching: Courses include Gender, Culture, and Development; Gender and Globalization in Latin America; and Sustainability and Social Justice. She develops interdisciplinary programs integrating environmental and social justice frameworks.

Grants & Collaborations: Received NSF funding for transnational coastal ecosystem research and Wenner-Gren Foundation support for studies on gender and grassroots social movements in Mexico.

Labs/Teams: Active in the Global Futures Scientists and Scholars network and collaborates with the Center for Biodiversity Outcomes on conservation and sustainability initiatives.