About Ana
Ana Ramirez is a proud Indigenous woman (Maya Akateka) and the first in her family to receive a doctoral degree. She is an experienced researcher with hands-on experience in schools, nonprofits, healthcare, and technology. She is a previous graduate intern at Atrium Health, where she worked on telehealth programs reaching out to diverse and rural populations. She believes in the opportunity to leverage qualitative data to advance the well-being of others. Her research on Indigenous communities has been funded by the Ford Foundation.
Research Interests
Maya identity and culture, Indigeneity, migrant and diasporic communities, information and communication technology, community development, local entrepreneurship, Indigenous methodologies, activist research, community engaged scholarship
Research Background
My dissertation explores how Maya diasporic communities in the United States utilize information and communication technology to cultivate enduring transborder social networks. Employing archival research, interviews, and innovative ethnographic methods, I uncover Indigenous digital practices and the rich history of Maya migrant communities harnessing technology across borders for decades. Drawing from a diverse array of disciplines including Anthropology, Indigenous studies, Critical Race and Technology Studies, Communications, and Science and Technology Studies, my research offers a comprehensive exploration of Indigeneity, diasporic communities, and technology. By foregrounding the creative agency driving these transborder connections for personal, social, and political ends, this project boldly challenges prevailing Western narratives of Indigeneity and technology.
Education
PhD Candidate, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, expected graduate 2025; MA, Universty of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2021; BA, Brown University, 2015
Presentations
"1. Ramirez, Ana. “Vida Maya: Indigenous Narratives of Migration, Diasporic Community, and Technological Adaptations.” Royster Research Seminar, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. February 8, 2024.
2. Justin Kramer and Ana Ramirez. “Youth and Family Engagement Program Qualitative Review.” Atrium Health. January 10, 2024.
3. Ramirez, Ana. “Fieldwork Precarity: The Future of Anthropological Work in Transition.” 2023 American Anthropological Association Annual Conference, Toronto, Canada. November 16, 2024.
4. Ramirez, Ana. “Participatory Research in Maya Communities.” COMM 900/HBEH 690: Current Issues in Participatory Research. UNC-CH. November 7th, 2019.
5. Ramirez, Ana. “Decolonizing the Academy.” SANA/SUNTA Spring 2019 Conference: Positive Futures, San Jose, Puerto Rico. May 3, 2019.
6. Ramirez, Ana. “Indigenous Well-Being in Research and in the Academy.” Understanding Complexity in Latin America, North Carolina Conference on Latin American Studies, Chapel Hill, NC. Feb 23, 2019.
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