Staff
Alejandro Velasco, Executive Editor
Alejandro Velasco is the Executive Editor at The NACLA Report on the Americas. He is a historian of modern Latin America whose research and teaching interests are in the areas of social movements, urban culture and democratization. His book, Barrio Rising: Urban Popular Politics and the Making of Modern Venezuela (University of California Press, 2015), couples archival and ethnographic research to examine how residents of Venezuela’s largest public housing community pursued full citizenship during the heyday of Latin America’s once-model democracy. Before joining the Gallatin faculty, Professor Velasco taught at Hampshire College, where he was a Five College Fellow, and at Duke University. Professor Velasco’s research has won major funding support from the Social Science Research Council, the American Historical Association, the Ford Foundation, and the Mellon Foundation, among others, and he has presented widely at both national and international conferences and symposia.
Heather Gies, Managing Editor
Heather Gies is a freelance journalist who writes about politics and social issues in Latin America, particularly human rights, inequality, and resource conflicts in Central America. Her writing has appeared in Al Jazeera, In These Times, World Politics Review, The Guardian, The Intercept, National Geographic, and other outlets. Gies previously worked as an editor and writer at teleSUR English in Quito, Ecuador. While completing a Master of Arts in Communication at Simon Fraser University, Gies conducted thesis research on food sovereignty and campesino movements in Honduras. She has continued to cover Honduras’ human rights and political situation, including the recent elections crisis. Gies has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies from Wilfrid Laurier University. Follow her on Twitter @HeatherGies.
Nestór David Pastor, Outreach Coordinator/ Editorial Assistant
Néstor David Pastor is a writer and translator from Queens, NY. He holds a BA in Spanish from Binghamton University and an MA in Spanish from Queens College. His writing and translations have appeared in Latino USA, The Nation, El Nuevo Día, 80grados, REMEZCLA, and OkayAfrica, among other publications. He is also an Associate Editor for Newtown Literary. His past experience includes working with NPR’s Radio Ambulante, the Center for Puerto Rican Studies, and Feet in 2 Worlds.
Leo Schwartz, Web Editor
Leo Schwartz is a a graduate student in New York University's Global Journalism program, pursuing dual master's degrees in journalism and Latin American studies, where his research focuses on Mexico and US-Latin American relations more broadly. His work has appeared in NACLA, PBS NewsHour, Deadspin, Roads & Kingdoms, and other outlets. Follow him on Twitter @LeoMSchwartz.
Board of Directors
Thomas Kruse, Board Chair Program Director, Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Pierre LaRamée, Executive Director, Medical Education Cooperation with Cuba (MEDICC)
Marcial Godoy-Anativia, Managing Director, Hemispheric Institute of Performance and Politics
Jill Lane, Director, NYU Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (CLACS)
Christy Thornton, Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins University
Alejandro Velasco, ex-oficio
Editorial Committee & Contributing Editors
Alejandro Velasco, Executive Editor
Emily Achtenberg
David Bacon
Dan Beeton
Michelle Chase
Nicole Fabricant
Hilary Goodfriend
Greg Grandin
Bret Gustafson
John L. Hammond
Judith Adler Hellman
Marisol LeBrón
Alex Main
Todd Miller
Joseph Nevins
Urayoán Noel
Dawn Paley
John Lindsay-Poland
Deborah Poole
Gerardo Renique
William I. Robinson
Fred Rosen
Christy Thornton
Kirsten Weld
