The UA and UNAM-Tucson Secure Influential Partner to Tackle Human Rights Issues

University of Arizona (UA) faculty at the forefront of human rights research are expanding their reach with a newly-formed connection with the National Human Rights Commission of Mexico (CNDH), coordinated by the Tucson branch of longstanding UA partner, The National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).

Distinguished scholars across disciplines, but united by their commitment to human rights, gathered at the UA to collaborate with leaders from CNDH, a United Nations-accredited organization driven to protect, promote, and study the human rights established by the Mexican legal system.

As the global landscape braces for a significant shift, the UA, UNAM, and CNDH recognize this engagement comes at a critical time, and with the need for immediate action. More than a dozen UA faculty members plan to initiate a regular dialogue with top scholars from CNDH to glean research on human rights topics including migration, legal issues, and history.

“This introduction gives us an opportunity to build a collaboration with a great deal of potential,” said Dr. Scott Whiteford, Professor at the Center for Latin American Studies and Director of the SBS Mexico Initiative at the UA’s College of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

In turn, CNDH hopes to advance understanding of complex issues in the study of human rights, bolstered by insight from distinguished UA scholars.

“Our ultimate goal is to share this unique knowledge with the citizens of Mexico, to help address their concerns about the most poignant human rights issues facing our world today,” said Dr. Edgar Corzo Sosa, Fifth General Visitor of CNDH.

With a rich history of building substantive relationships with the strongest scholars and partners, both here and abroad, this connection is a prime example of the collaborative spirit the UA embodies. It is also a direct result of the UA alliance with UNAM, the largest university in Latin America, which selected the UA as a center to foster research between the two institutions.

“The UNAM connection with the University of Arizona provides a groundwork and a framework for leading-edge research and collaboration,” said Dr. Whiteford— a model the latest engagement with CNDH reinforces.

Top picture, left to right: Dr. Edgar Corzo Sosa, Fifth General Visitor of CNDH Enrique A. Gómez Montiel, Deputy Consul for Mexico in Tucson; Dr. Jesús Arnoldo Bautista Corral, Coordinator of Public Affairs and Management, UNAM-Tucson (Center for Mexican Studies); Héctor Daniel Dávalos Martínez, Executive Secretary, CNDH