Our Mission
Rooted in the Social Sciences Division at UC Santa Cruz, the institute supports innovative scholarship that changes the world. The institute is a critical intellectual and social hub, connecting scholars across UC Santa Cruz and partners beyond the University, developing research-based solutions to urgent problems in the world.
Research News
Events of Interest
MBEP 8th Annual State of the Region
We are pleased to announce that Chris Benner and Manuel Pastor of Solidarity Economics will be joining us to discuss their approach to address widening income inequality, rising economic insecurities, and growing social and racial fragmentation while also promoting innovation and economic growth. Congressman Jimmy Panetta will also be joining us to provide a federal legislative update on policies and programs impacting our region.
Find out more »RCA 30th Anniversary Celebration: Sharing Futures, Speaking Truths
Please join us for the renaming of the Research Center of the Americas in honor of civil rights & feminist icon Dolores Huerta! The event, to celebrate the center’s 30th …
Find out more »All-In: Co-Creating Knowledge for Justice Conference
Save the date and be a part of this 3-day national conference that focuses on sharing strategies to expand and deepen collaborative approaches for the truly equitable co-production of knowledge. We will explore the dynamic links between campus-community partnerships, hands-on research, and student-community engagement. Together we can build partnerships for change.
Find out more »All-In: Co-Creating Knowledge for Justice Conference
October 26-28, 2022 | Santa Cruz, CA
A national 3-day conference that will explore the dynamic links between campus-community partnerships, hands-on research, and student-community engagement. University scholars, community-based practitioners, undergraduate and graduate students, community members and organizations, foundations, organizers, artists, and activists will come together to share strategies, practices, and solutions for building innovative partnerships for critical collaborative research and social change. #knowledge4justice
#WeChooseNow: Climate Justice From the Southern Frontlines
On April 4th, Colette Pichon Battle, Executive Director of the Gulf Coast Center for Law & Policy, was in conversation with UC Santa Cruz professor Flora Lu and graduate student Chris Lang. They discussed the urgent need: to stop investing in the same extractive industries that divide and harm us; to demand that corporations pay their fair share on an equitable and transformative recovery; to rebuild our communities better; and to act from a position of love and abundance together.
