A more about me

I am from Juliaca, Peru. Throughout my life, I have lived in small rural areas in the highlands and the Amazon jungle of Peru. Many of my research interests are deeply connected to my personal experiences and what I witnessed growing up. To this day, many people still face the same challenges I encountered.

I consider myself fortunate to have had opportunities that are not often available. At the age of 13, I received a scholarship to attend COAR Lima, a selective school providing top students from diverse, underprivileged regions with high-quality education. There, I had the privilege of meeting people from every region of Peru, each facing different realities. From this diversity, I gained wisdom, ideas, and hope.

Despite having received a high-quality education, financial constraints initially prevented me from attending university. However, I was fortunate once again and became a PRONABEC scholar, a government program that offers scholarships for high-performing, low-income students. I chose to study economics with the goal of conducting research that could provide evidence to improve people’s quality of life and help democratize opportunities for underprivileged communities. For me, this is about much more than just doing research; it’s about creating meaningful change. 

At Innovations for Poverty Action, I became convinced that this was the right path for me. Working across Peru to implement an RCT aimed at preventing gender-based violence, and participating in an impact evaluation in Belize for an innovative STEAM-focused school to reduce gender gaps, reinforced my decision to pursue an academic career.

In the near future, I plan to pursue a PhD in Economics. This journey is just beginning, and I am grateful to all my PIs, professors, colleagues, and friends who are part of it.

Special thanks to EconThaki, an organization that aims to increase the diversity in academia in economics and public policy in Latin America and the Caribbean, for their support.