Research

My research explores the intersections of climate policy, environmental change, and human rights, with a focus on political ecology, urban adaptation, climate mobility, and Indigenous governance. I integrate gender and environmental justice into co-participatory research across Latin America, North America, and Europe. My work has been published in Ecology and Society and supported by multiple research fellowships. I am fluent in English, Spanish, and French, CITI-certified, and PADI Open Water certified, bringing interdisciplinary and field-based depth to both terrestrial and marine inquiries.

Urban Adaptation and Climate Mobility in Latin America

My doctoral research investigates how Latin American cities can adapt to increasing climate-driven migration while addressing structural environmental inequalities. Focusing on Mexico City and Rio de Janeiro: two megacities experiencing climate stress, internal displacement, and fragmented urban planning, the project analyzes how built infrastructure (e.g., housing, water systems), natural infrastructure (e.g., ecological buffers), and enabling governance (e.g., land-use policy) intersect to shape urban resilience.

Through interdisciplinary methods, including spatial analysis, fieldwork, participatory scenario workshops, and policy review, the project aims to generate actionable frameworks for rights-based urban adaptation that centers the lived experiences of displaced and marginalized communities.

This work contributes to emerging climate justice and mobility scholarship, while also producing practical tools such as GIS vulnerability maps, policy integration matrices, and co-designed recommendations with local partners.

Indigenous Participation in International Environmental Politics

Indigenous Peoples have long been leaders in environmental stewardship, yet international conservation institutions continue to limit their political agency. This research examines how post-colonial power structures embedded in multilateral environmental negotiations restrict Indigenous and local actors to marginal, symbolic roles, often as observers rather than decision-makers. Through institutional analysis and interviews with Indigenous delegates and advocates, the study reveals how global conservation spaces reproduce colonial hierarchies under the guise of inclusion.

Rather than advocating for “participation” on imposed terms, the study centers Indigenous demands for self-determination, governance authority, and recognition of territorial knowledge systems. It calls for the transformation of international environmental politics, not through inclusion alone, but through structural shifts that affirm Indigenous leadership and collective rights on the global stage.

Co-authored under the leadership of Dr. Kemi Fuentes-George, this project contributes to ongoing efforts to decolonize global environmental governance and support Indigenous-led diplomacy in multilateral spaces.

Gender and Community-Based Marine Conservation

Marine conservation efforts often overlook the gendered dimensions of environmental governance, yet inclusive and care-based approaches are essential to sustaining both ecosystems and livelihoods. This research explores how gender equity and collaborative care practices shape the governance and effectiveness of locally managed marine areas (LMMAs) in Madagascar. Drawing on fieldwork with coastal communities and Indigenous fishers, the study highlights how power dynamics, cultural norms, and caregiving roles intersect with marine conservation strategies.

Rather than framing conservation as a technocratic or enforcement-driven process, this work advocates for inclusive governance that centers the lived experiences and contributions of women, elders, and community caregivers. In doing so, it provides an alternative model of marine protection that strengthens social cohesion and ecological outcomes alike.

Led by Dr. Mez Baker-Médard, this project contributes to a growing body of feminist political ecology research that reimagines what effective, just, and community-rooted marine governance can look like.

The Political Ecology of Avocado Agribusiness in Mexico

Framed as a “green gold rush,” the rapid expansion of avocado production in Michoacán has generated serious socio-ecological consequences, from deforestation and water scarcity to cartel violence and territorial dispossession. This research investigates the power dynamics embedded in Mexico’s avocado agribusiness through a political ecology lens, tracing how global commodity demand intersects with environmental degradation and contested land governance.

Using two contrasting case studies, the project reveals how both state policies and market actors reproduce unsustainable and undemocratic rural development models. In response, it calls for democratic agrarian reform that centers sustainability, territorial rights, and community well-being.

The research is developed in parallel with the visual investigation Green Gold, co-directed through the Documentary Campus Masterschool and supported by The Redford Center, Creative Europe MEDIA, and the Rogovy Foundation. The project was also awarded Middlebury College’s Kellogg Fellowship and the Scott A. Margolin ’99 Environmental Studies Award, recognizing excellence in the integrated study of human and natural environments.

Strategic Site Analysis for Ocean Conservation Expeditions

As part of National Geographic’s Pristine Seas initiative, this research supported the selection of future marine conservation expedition sites across Latin America and the Pacific. The analysis combined environmental data, policy reviews, economic indicators, and demographic profiles to evaluate site viability and strategic relevance. In addition to ecological and geopolitical considerations, the research identified place-based narrative opportunities to support high-impact media storytelling and public engagement.

The project reflects a holistic approach to ocean conservation: one that integrates science, policy, and narrative potential to inform expedition planning. Final recommendations were presented to the senior leadership team at National Geographic Pristine Seas in 2022, contributing to the strategic vision of one of the world’s leading marine protection efforts.

Indigenous Autonomy and Environmental Governance in Mexico

This research examines the political strategies, grassroots organizing, and community-led resistance that enabled the Purépecha town of Cherán to declare autonomy from the Mexican state in 2011. Through fieldwork and interviews with local leaders, forest defenders, and members of the communal councils, the project explores how Indigenous self-governance emerged as both a response to state neglect and a model for territorial sovereignty.

The study highlights the intersections of Indigenous law, environmental stewardship, and collective security in a region shaped by violence, land grabs, and organized crime. It contributes to broader conversations on autonomy, anti-extractivist resistance, and democratic innovation in Latin America.

This research evolved into the short documentary Enraizados, co-directed with Sélim Benzeghia and supported by The Redford Center, Documentary Campus, and the AlterCiné Foundation. The film has screened at international festivals and is part of an active impact campaign led in partnership with Cherán’s communal councils.

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Publications

Google Scholar Profile
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Peer-Reviewed Articles

Baker-Médard, M., Rakotondrazafy, V., Randriamihaja, M., Ratsimbazafy, P., & Juarez-Serna, I. M. (2021). "Gender Equity and Collaborative Care in Madagascar’s Locally Managed Marine Areas." Published in Ecology and Society: Special Issue.

Fuentes-George, K., & Juarez-Serna, I. M. "Observers or Participants?: Post-Colonial Barriers between International Conservation Institutions and Indigenous and Local Participation." Published in Environmental Politics Journal: Special Issue.

Book Chapters

Fuentes-George, K., & Juarez-Serna, I. M. "Climate Change and International Relations: Indigenous Participation in International Environmental Law." Chapter 4, Expected in Climate Change and International Relations by Edward Elgar Press, 2024.

Academic Thesis

Juarez-Serna, I. M. "Green Gold: The Political Ecology of the Avocado Agribusiness in Mexico". Undergraduate Thesis, Middlebury College, 2023.

Investigative Reports

Nithart, C., Bonnemains, J., Guilissen, G., Crépeau-Pons, E., Edin, J-P., Contant, L., Poirault, C., Torres Márquez, I., Bossard, C., Colasse, L., Malassis, O., Juarez-Serna, I., & des Bois, R. (2022). "A la Trace" Published by Association de protection de l’Homme et de l’environnement, supported by Fondation Brigitte Bardot, Fondation Franz Weber, and Ministère de la transition écologique et solidaire, France.

Ivonne Serna

Research

Publications

Google Scholar Profile
Research Gate Profile

Peer-Reviewed Articles

Book Chapters

Academic Thesis

Investigative Reports

Recent Work

Research

Publications

Google Scholar Profile Research Gate Profile

Peer-Reviewed Articles

Book Chapters

Academic Thesis

Investigative Reports

Recent Work

Google Scholar Profile
Research Gate Profile