# DRCLAS Faculty Grants Support Research Partnerships Across Latin America August 05, 2026 This spring, the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies (DRCLAS) awarded Faculty Grants to four Harvard researchers whose work spans Argentina, Peru, Panama, and Brazil. Together, their projects reflect the breadth of scholarship connecting Harvard and Latin America, from education and public health to infectious disease and political science. The projects address some of the region's most pressing challenges: evaluating a social-emotional learning program serving hundreds of thousands of Argentine children, strengthening disease surveillance in the Peruvian Amazon, advancing malaria elimination efforts in Panama, and examining how Brazilian states are responding to the intersection of climate policy and international trade. Although each project tackles a distinct challenge, they share a common approach: working in close partnership with local universities, government agencies, and community organizations. These collaborations ensure that the research is grounded in regional expertise while generating evidence that can inform policy, strengthen public health and education systems, and support more effective responses to complex challenges across Latin America. ### Strengthening Disease Surveillance in the Peruvian Amazon **Faculty Awardee:** Hannah Greenwald Healy, Assistant Professor of Environmental Health and Exposure Science, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health **Project:** *Environmental Surveillance of Emerging and Endemic Diseases in the Peruvian Amazon* Hannah Greenwald Healy is establishing wastewater surveillance systems in the Peruvian Amazon, where biodiversity loss, environmental change, and limited health infrastructure increase the risk of infectious disease outbreaks. Working with faculty at Peru's University of Engineering and Technology (UTEC) and Amanatari, an NGO serving Amazonian communities, the project will establish surveillance sites in remote communities along the Amazon River and at the regional reference hospital in Iquitos. The research aims to improve early detection of emerging and endemic diseases while expanding scientific understanding of wastewater surveillance in tropical environments. Beyond strengthening public health preparedness, the project has the potential to inform sanitation, infrastructure, and climate policy in Peru while creating a model for disease surveillance in underserved regions. ![Hanna Greenwald](/sites/g/files/omnuum12451/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-08/Hannah%20Greenwald.jpg?h=fb81a5f3&itok=lDevZfDT) ### Advancing Malaria Elimination in Panama **Faculty Awardee:** Daniel Edward Neafsey, Associate Professor of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health **Project:** *DNA Sequencing to Understand Recurrent Cases of Malaria in Panamá* Daniel Neafsey is investigating why malaria cases are resurging in Panama by determining whether recurrent infections result from treatment failure or entirely new infections. His team will compare the genetic profiles of malaria parasites collected from patients over time, providing evidence that can guide treatment strategies and strengthen malaria elimination efforts. A central component of the project is scientific capacity building. Researchers from Panama's Instituto Conmemorativo Gorgas de Estudios de la Salud (ICGES) will train with Neafsey's laboratory at Harvard to learn a newly developed genetic sequencing method before applying it to clinical samples collected by Panama's Ministry of Health. Together, the teams will share their findings with public health agencies while expanding research and training opportunities for scientists in both countries. ![Daniel Neafsay](/sites/g/files/omnuum12451/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-08/Daniel%20Neafsay.jpg?h=297da09b&itok=f9z59WeQ) ### Examining the Climate-Trade Transition in Brazil **Faculty Awardee:** Dustin Tingley, Thomas D. Cabot Professor of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School and the Harvard Government Department **Project:** *Carbon Shock: Assessing the Multilevel Politics of Climate-Trade Adjustment in Brazil* As countries adopt more ambitious climate policies, new trade rules are reshaping global markets. Dustin Tingley is examining how Brazilian states are responding to the European Union's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which places a carbon price on certain imported goods, including steel and aluminum. Because Brazilian states differ in both their exposure to international markets and their capacity to transition to renewable energy, the project will analyze how these differences influence political decision-making, industry adaptation, and trade outcomes. The research team will develop new measures of state-level exposure to CBAM and renewable energy opportunities to better understand when international climate policies encourage adaptation—and when they generate resistance. As Brazil continues to play a leading role in global climate discussions, the project will produce new state-level data and policy-relevant insights into how countries navigate the growing intersection of climate governance and international trade. ![Dustin Tingley](/sites/g/files/omnuum12451/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-08/Dustin%20Tingley.jpg?h=297da09b&itok=8lcqimMH) ### Evaluating Social-Emotional Learning in Argentina **Faculty Awardee:** Emiliana Vegas, Professor of Practice and Faculty Chair, Education Policy and Analysis, Harvard Graduate School of Education **Project:** *Evaluating the Causal Impact of Programa Todos Humanos on Socio-Emotional Learning in Argentine Primary Schools* Emiliana Vegas is leading the first rigorous evaluation of *Programa Todos Humanos*, a low-cost, video-based initiative that teaches social-emotional skills—including empathy and self-regulation—to more than 300,000 Argentine children ages 6–9. Designed to require no teacher training, the program has the potential to scale nationally, but its effectiveness has never been formally evaluated. Working with the Education Lab for Latin America (ELLA) at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Vegas and her team will conduct a randomized controlled trial to determine whether the program improves children's social and emotional development. Conducted in partnership with Programa Todos Humanos, the research could help inform decisions about expanding the program as national education policy, shaping the education of thousands of children across Argentina. ![Emiliana Vegas](/sites/g/files/omnuum12451/files/styles/hwp_1_1__480x480/public/2026-08/Emiliana%20Vegas.jpg?h=297da09b&itok=dYmLuz_a) Share on:- [ Facebook ](#) - [ Twitter ](#) - [ Linkedin ](#)