Current Fellows

Ambassador Thomas A. Shannon Jr.

Antonella Bandiera

Assistant Professor, ITAM
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She is an assistant professor at the Department of Political Science at ITAM in Mexico City (on leave) for the Political Economy, Causal Inference, and Program Evaluation courses.

Bandiera studies historical and contemporary challenges to the effective functioning of the state in Latin America. Her work focuses on non-state armed actors, forced displacement, and migration, exploring the interplay between these phenomena and political and economic development. In addition to investigating the causes and consequences of bad governance, her recent projects seek to identify policies that can break this cycle, mitigating the effects of non-state armed actors and improving the integration of displaced populations. Bandiera tackles these questions by combining quasi-experimental and experimental designs with intensive fieldwork.

She holds a master's degree and Ph.D. in political science from NYU and a B.A. in political science from Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Rebecca Bell-Martin

Assistant Professor of Political Science, el Tecnológico de Monterrey
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She is an assistant professor of political science at el Tecnológico de Monterrey, México. Her work bridges debates from comparative politics and international relations. Bell-Martin investigates questions related to: political behavior in violent contexts, the politics of criminal violence, and political participation in the Global South. 

She also explores these questions through a combination of qualitative, quantitative, and experimental methods and has extensive experience conducting field research in Latin America.

James Gerber

Emeritus Professor of Economics, San Diego State University; and Non-resident Scholar, Rice University Center for U.S. and Mexico
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James Gerber is a senior fellow in the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies at UC San Diego and professor of economics, emeritus, San Diego State University. His research focuses on the macro-economic history of Mexico, the U.S.-Mexico border region and U.S.-Mexico relations. In addition to his recent book, "Border Economies: Cities Bridging the U.S.-Mexico Divide Border," he is the co-author (with Joan Anderson) of "Fifty Years of Change on the U.S.-Mexico Border" (University of Texas, 2008), an economic history of financial crises, "A Great Deal of Ruin: Financial Crises since 1929" (Cambridge Univety Press, 2019), and a widely used undergraduate text, "International Economics" (Pearson Higher Education, 8 editions). Recent articles in academic journals include “The U.S.-Mexico Border Human Development Index, 1990–2015” (with Joan Anderson) “Does Mexico need free trade with the United States?” (with Yang Liang) and “The U.S. Panic of 1907 and the Coming of the Mexican Revolution” (with Thomas Passananti).

Michael Lettieri

Senior Fellow for Human Rights
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Michael Lettieri is a Senior Fellow for Human Rights at USMEX. His work has explored the political culture and authoritarian politics in 20th Century Mexico, journalism and threats to freedom of expression during the drug war and gender-based violence.

He is the co-founder and managing editor of the Mexico Violence Resource Project and has written broadly about the intersections between democracy, security policy, organized crime and violence. His current work includes a study of foreign media coverage of the Mexican drug war, and an effort to develop new digital tools for documenting disappearances in partnership with local activists in Sinaloa.

He holds a Ph.D. in modern Latin American history from UC San Diego and previously worked at the Trans-Border Institute at the University of San Diego where he managed programs on human rights and the border region.

John B. McNeece III

Senior Advisor for Energy and Trade
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John McNeece is Senior Advisor for Energy and Trade at USMEX. His work in Mexico extends back to the NAFTA negotiations, where he served as an advisor on issues of Mexican law to the Office of the United States Trade Representative negotiating team for NAFTA Chapter Nineteen: Review and Dispute Settlement in Antidumping/Countervailing Duty Matters.

McNeece’s transactional work in Mexico included legal advice on formation of cross-border joint ventures, acquisition and development of renewable energy projects, complex financial transactions, mergers and acquisitions and venture capital transactions. He has written extensively on the Mexican energy Reform in the power sector.

McNeece is a graduate of Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley Law School. He is also an attorney who worked with the international law firm of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP working out of the firm’s San Diego and New York offices until his retirement from the practice of law in July 2017. At Pillsbury, he was a member of the Latin America, Energy and Corporate & Securities practices.

Sandra Rebok

Historian
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Sandra Rebok is a historian and social scientist specializing in 18th- and 19th-century scientific exploration voyages and the political contexts in which they occurred, with a particular focus on the complex entanglements between the pursuit of politics and of science. Trained in Germany, Spain, and France, she has held academic appointments and fellowships at leading institutions in Europe and America, and gained curatorial and advisory experience through international exhibitions and cultural diplomacy projects. Committed to interdisciplinary dialogues and global approaches, along with a strong interest in science diplomacy, history diplomacy, and culture and foreign policy, she seeks to illustrate how historical knowledge contributes to a better understanding of the challenges of today’s societies.

With more than 20 years of experience in Humboldtian scholarship, with a particular focus on his connections to the Spanish Empire and the United States, she is currently working on a new book project that analyzes Thomas Jefferson’s strategic pursuits regarding the Southwest under Spanish and Mexican governance. The overall goal of this book project is to illustrate how, from the American Revolution onward, the U.S. nation-building process and the developments in the Spanish and later Mexican Southwest became increasingly intertwined, culminating in the U.S. annexation of this region in 1848. It addresses the urgent need to better understand the Hispanic presence in the U.S. today by tracing the historic legacy of the Southwest as a space that has generated a common culture, identity, and history, which remains visible in this region, both within and beyond the U.S. border.

Alan Sweedler

Senior Advisor for Energy and Environment
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Alan Sweedler is Senior Advisor for Energy and Environment at USMEX where his expertise is in the area of energy policy, technology and environmental impacts of energy use, especially climate change and the energy-water nexus. Sweedler was a Congressional Science Fellow and worked in the U.S. Senate on issues of energy, water and national security. He was also a Carnegie Foundation Science Fellow at Stanford’s Center for International Security and Arms Control and was a visiting scholar at the University of California’s Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation as well as director of the California Energy Commission’s Energy Innovation Small Grants Program. He has edited, co-edited and contributed chapters to books dealing with energy, air quality, security and climate change with a focus on the U.S.-Mexico border region. He recently retired from San Diego State University, where he was associate vice president in charge of the university’s international programs, director of the Center for Energy Studies and a professor of physics. He currently holds a PIMSE Chair as a Distinguished Visiting Professor at CETYS University in Mexico and serves on the Congressionally mandated Good Neighbor Environmental Board (GNEB).

Denice García

Special Advisor on Binational Affairs

Denice García is an accomplished professional with over 20 years of government, economic development and international affairs experience, currently serving as the chief binational affairs officer for the County of San Diego. In this role, she works to enhance collaboration between the County of San Diego and cross-border entities, including community partners, government officials, environmental agencies, and the businesses community in the U.S.–Mexico binational region. She leads efforts to identify opportunities for cooperation and brings solutions to the County of San Diego and the binational region.

Previously, García served as chief of staff to chairwoman at the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, she directed daily operations and managed a team of 14 staff members, she also managed a $3 million office budget, working alongside the chairwoman and the policy team, she collaborated to develop policy priorities, and represented the Chairwoman with various stakeholders.

García has held key roles such as director of international affairs and deputy director of the Department of Government Affairs for the City of San Diego's Mayor's Office, where she advanced binational relationships and led the U.S.–Mexico Border Mayors Association. She also helped create the city's first-ever immigrant affairs manager position and contributed to the Welcoming San Diego Strategic Plan for immigrant integration.

Education:

• Master of Public Administration, National Urban Fellows, Baruch College (2014)
• Bachelor of Arts in International Business, San Diego State University (2001)
• Study Abroad, Universidad de Salamanca, Spain (2000)
• Meeting and Events Planning Certificate, San Diego State University (2006)

Roberto Arechederra

Strategic Advisor for Binational Initiatives

Roberto Arechederra is an expert in corporate strategy and finance, seamlessly combining his roles as an investment banker, advisor, and economic analyst with a strong passion for education and thought leadership.

Professional Background Summary:

• Public Service: Served as secretary of economic development for the State of Jalisco (2021–2024), leading major initiatives to foster investment, innovation and competitiveness.
• Private Sector Leadership: Currently managing partner and chairman of the board at Bursar, a strategic-consulting and investment banking firm, as well as an angel investor supporting high-potential ventures.
• Media and Community Engagement: Founder of Aldea Financiera, a platform devoted to personal and financial growth. He has also been an economic analyst and commentator for more than 20 years on major networks such as Televisa.
• Academic and Leadership Roles: Former president of IMEF Guadalajara, recognized for his leadership in Mexico’s financial sector. He is also a professor at Universidad Panamericana and a fellow at the University of California, San Diego.
• Author: Bestselling author of “¡Puedo Llegar! Your Path to Financial Freedom Begins with the First Step.”

Martha Guerrero

Adriana López Acle Delgado

Jordán Mosqueda Juárez

José E. Múzquiz

Martha Balaguera

Deborah Boehm

Katrina Burgess

Guadalupe Chávez

Francisco Javier Guerrero Aguirre

Fernando Jiménez

Home University: El Colegio de Jalisco
Department Affiliation: Political Science
Research Question: Analysis of Police and Intelligence Collaboration in the CaliBaja Region

Pedro Paulo Orraca Romano

Home University: COLEF
Department Affiliation: Economics
Research Question: Do minimum wages affect the employment and earnings of undocumented workers? Evidence from Mexican immigrants in the US

María de Guadalupe Salmorán Villar

Home University: UNAM
Department Affiliation: Law
Research Question: Judicial Elections of the Supreme Court: Democratic Legitimacy or Judicial Subordination?

Paul Alejandro Sánchez

María Cervantes-Macías

Home University: University of British Columbia
Department Affiliation: Geography
Research Question: Localizing NAFTA: Urban Governance in North American Border Metropoles

Zaith López

Home University: Stanford University
Department Affiliation: Anthropology
Research Question: Rajándose: Male Addicts in Institutional Drug Recovery in the US-Mexico Borderlands

Ivan Sanchís

Jesús Villa