Graduate Student
Specialization:
Environmental Politics and Governance
Political Economy and Quantitative Methods
Education:
M.Sc and B.Sc. in Economics from Universidad del Rosario.
Bio:
Laura is a PhD student in Political Science at UC Santa Barbara studying the political economy of environmental governance and the energy transition in Latin America. Her current research examines how local communities—particularly Indigenous communities—participate in environmental decision-making and shape the governance of renewable energy projects and fossil fuel decommissioning in Colombia and Ecuador. She is especially interested in procedural justice, community consultation, local institutional capacity, and the ways conflict legacies affect trust in governments and energy companies. Her work combines field research with experimental and quasi-experimental methods. Before joining UCSB, Laura worked as a research assistant at New York University Abu Dhabi and Universidad del Rosario. She also has professional experience in the nuclear energy sector in the United Arab Emirates and has conducted research on public policy and armed conflict in Colombia.