Matilde Córdoba Azcárate

Matilde Córdoba Azcárate is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of California, San Diego. Her research focuses on spatial enclosure, heritage politics, tourism mobilities, and the socio-ecological dimensions of cultural practices. She holds a PhD in Sociocultural Anthropology from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid (2007), along with B.A. and M.A. degrees in Sociology and Social Anthropology from the same institution.

Education:

• PhD in Sociocultural Anthropology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (2007)
• M.A. in Social Anthropology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (2005)
• B.A. in Sociology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (2001)

Research Interests: Dr. Córdoba Azcárate explores the intersections of tourism, capitalism, and environmental governance. Her work critically examines how heritage sites and natural landscapes are commodified through tourism, as well as the socio-political dynamics of spatial exclusion and mobility. She employs ethnographic methods to analyze these phenomena in transnational contexts.

Awards & Grants:

• Fulbright Post-doctoral Fellowship (2010–2012)
• Institute for Science, Innovation and Society, University of Oxford (2010–2011)
• National Plan for Research and Development grants (Spain, 2004–2015)
• UC San Diego Non-Senate Faculty Development Awards (2015, 2016)

Advising & Grants: While no specific advisees are listed, her research has been supported by multiple institutional grants. She is affiliated with the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies at UC San Diego and contributes to the editorial boards of Revista de Antropología Social, Transfers: an interdisciplinary journal on mobility studies, and Etnográfica.

Labs & Collaborations: Her work intersects with UC San Diego’s Democracy Lab and the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches to globalization and cultural policy.