Researchers from Florida Atlantic University and the University of Puerto Rico join Dean Howrsell's In Conversation Podcast to discuss how communities in South Florida and Puerto Rico are adapting to climate instability. As climate instability has major public health implications, from extreme heat to changing disease patterns, these researchers examine how health systems and communities are adapting to new health challenges. They also explore how cultural factors shape people's health-seeking behaviors and the resilience of health systems in the face of climate-related threats.

We welcome Dr. Adriana M. Garriga-Lopez, Dr. Katherine Rynkiewich, and Dr. Patria C. Lopez to our latest edition of In Conversation with Dean Horswell!

Dr. Adriana M. Garriga-Lopez is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Comparative Studies at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida. Prof. Garriga-Lopez holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology (2010) from Columbia University in New York. Dr. Garriga-Lopez is the lead Principal Investigator on this project. Garriga-Lopez previously received an NSF (2021-2024), Award #2049565 on “Ethics of Care and Compounded Disaster”. She joined the faculty at the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters in 2022. Garriga-Lopez is originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Dr. Katharina Rynkiewich is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida. Prof. Rynkiewich holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology (2020) from Washington University in St. Louis and an M.A. in Social Sciences (2013) from The University of Chicago. Dr. Rynkiewich is the Co-Principal Investigator and has worked with Dr. Garriga-Lopez on establishing The Ethnographic Lab at Florida Atlantic since her arrival in 2022. Dr. Rynkiewich is originally from Mt. Vernon, Indiana.

Dr. Patria C. Lopez de Victoria Rodriguez is Associate Professor of English at the University of Puerto Rico, Cayey campus. She holds a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics in health from The Pennsylvania State University (2016) and is the PI of this project’s collaborative nexus. Lopez de Victoria has received funding from NIH (Award #R21MD013701; 2018-2020) and the Alzheimer’s Association (Award #AARG 20-685407; 2021-2024). She also leads a team of undergraduate students from diverse disciplines carrying out research with older adults in Puerto Rico.

Dr. Patricia Noboa Ortega is Professor of Social Science at the University of Puerto Rico, Cayey campus. Dr. Noboa Ortega holds a PhD in Psychology (2005) from the University of Puerto Rico. In 2017, Prof. Noboa Ortega co-founded the Legal and Psychological Clinic resulting from ethnographic research carried out in Puerto Rico on the psychosocial effects of Hurricane Maria. Her work has been published in the anthology, “Aftershocks of Disaster” (Haymarket Books). Dr. Noboa Ortega is Executive Director of PICSI: Proyecto de Integración Comunitaria San Isidro (San Isidro Community Integration Project).

Researchers from Florida Atlantic University and the University of Puerto Rico join Dean Howrsell's In Conversation Podcast to discuss how communities in South Florida and Puerto Rico are adapting to climate instability. As climate instability has major public health implications, from extreme heat to changing disease patterns, these researchers examine how health systems and communities are adapting to new health challenges. They also explore how cultural factors shape people's health-seeking behaviors and the resilience of health systems in the face of climate-related threats.

We welcome Dr. Adriana M. Garriga-Lopez, Dr. Katherine Rynkiewich, and Dr. Patria C. Lopez to our latest edition of In Conversation with Dean Horswell!

Dr. Adriana M. Garriga-Lopez is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Comparative Studies at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida. Prof. Garriga-Lopez holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology (2010) from Columbia University in New York. Dr. Garriga-Lopez is the lead Principal Investigator on this project. Garriga-Lopez previously received an NSF (2021-2024), Award #2049565 on “Ethics of Care and Compounded Disaster”. She joined the faculty at the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters in 2022. Garriga-Lopez is originally from San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Dr. Katharina Rynkiewich is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida. Prof. Rynkiewich holds a Ph.D. in Anthropology (2020) from Washington University in St. Louis and an M.A. in Social Sciences (2013) from The University of Chicago. Dr. Rynkiewich is the Co-Principal Investigator and has worked with Dr. Garriga-Lopez on establishing The Ethnographic Lab at Florida Atlantic since her arrival in 2022. Dr. Rynkiewich is originally from Mt. Vernon, Indiana.

Dr. Patria C. Lopez de Victoria Rodriguez is Associate Professor of English at the University of Puerto Rico, Cayey campus. She holds a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics in health from The Pennsylvania State University (2016) and is the PI of this project’s collaborative nexus. Lopez de Victoria has received funding from NIH (Award #R21MD013701; 2018-2020) and the Alzheimer’s Association (Award #AARG 20-685407; 2021-2024). She also leads a team of undergraduate students from diverse disciplines carrying out research with older adults in Puerto Rico.

Dr. Patricia Noboa Ortega is Professor of Social Science at the University of Puerto Rico, Cayey campus. Dr. Noboa Ortega holds a PhD in Psychology (2005) from the University of Puerto Rico. In 2017, Prof. Noboa Ortega co-founded the Legal and Psychological Clinic resulting from ethnographic research carried out in Puerto Rico on the psychosocial effects of Hurricane Maria. Her work has been published in the anthology, “Aftershocks of Disaster” (Haymarket Books). Dr. Noboa Ortega is Executive Director of PICSI: Proyecto de Integración Comunitaria San Isidro (San Isidro Community Integration Project).

In this edition of In Conversation, Dr. Michael Horswell engages with Professors Dr. Carol Bishop Mills & Dr. Kevin Wagner, Co-Directors of the PolCom Lab in the College of Arts & Letters at Florida Atlantic University. The PolCom Lab investigates and analyzes public opinion and political trends nationwide, focusing on Florida.

Dr. Carol Bishop Mills is a Professor and Director of the School of Communication and Multimedia Studies at Florida Atlantic University, and the co-director of the FAU PolCom Lab. She earned her Ph.D. in Communication from Purdue University and is known for her extensive research in relational communication, particularly in complex dynamics such as teasing, bullying, harassment, and frenemyships. Her recent work focuses on bullying within academic settings, providing critical insights into how these behaviors impact both individuals and institutions. Dr. Mills has published widely on these topics and previously co-chaired the National Communication Association’s Anti-Bullying Task Force and served as the editor for the newsletter for the Global Listening Centre.

Kevin Wagner is a Professor of Political Science, Co-Director of the PolCom Lab and Associate Dean of Research in the College of Arts & Letters at Florida Atlantic University. He teaches courses on American politics, political organizations, public opinion, judicial politics, and media in politics. Wagner’s research has primarily centered around understanding political change in democratic systems including shifts caused by technological developments. His expertise has been featured in leading publications including the New York Times and American Review of Politics. Dr. Wagner earned a J.D. from the University of Florida and previously worked as a practicing attorney before earning his M.A. and Ph.D. in political science at the University of Florida.

In this edition of In Conversation, Dr. Michael Horswell engages with Professors Dr. Carol Bishop Mills & Dr. Kevin Wagner, Co-Directors of the PolCom Lab in the College of Arts & Letters at Florida Atlantic University. The PolCom Lab investigates and analyzes public opinion and political trends nationwide, focusing on Florida.

Dr. Carol Bishop Mills is a Professor and Director of the School of Communication and Multimedia Studies at Florida Atlantic University, and the co-director of the FAU PolCom Lab. She earned her Ph.D. in Communication from Purdue University and is known for her extensive research in relational communication, particularly in complex dynamics such as teasing, bullying, harassment, and frenemyships. Her recent work focuses on bullying within academic settings, providing critical insights into how these behaviors impact both individuals and institutions. Dr. Mills has published widely on these topics and previously co-chaired the National Communication Association’s Anti-Bullying Task Force and served as the editor for the newsletter for the Global Listening Centre.

Kevin Wagner is a Professor of Political Science, Co-Director of the PolCom Lab and Associate Dean of Research in the College of Arts & Letters at Florida Atlantic University. He teaches courses on American politics, political organizations, public opinion, judicial politics, and media in politics. Wagner’s research has primarily centered around understanding political change in democratic systems including shifts caused by technological developments. His expertise has been featured in leading publications including the New York Times and American Review of Politics. Dr. Wagner earned a J.D. from the University of Florida and previously worked as a practicing attorney before earning his M.A. and Ph.D. in political science at the University of Florida.

Dr. Michael Horswell engages in conversation with Dr. Annette LaRocco, an associate professor in FAU’s Department of Political Science. In this upcoming episode, Dr. LaRocco discusses several topics, including conservation politics, how studying abroad helped shape her career, and her new book, The Nature of Politics: State Building and the Conservation Estate in Postcolonial Botswana.

Why do states choose to set aside land for national parks and other protected areas? How do these decisions impact their citizens and structure their economies? How and why do states decide to make governing their environments a political priority? These are questions explored by Annette LaRocco in her book The Nature of Politics: State Building and the Conservation Estate in Postcolonial Botswana. Drawing on hundreds of interviews and years of extensive fieldwork in Botswana, LaRocco argues that the seemingly mundane processes of conserving landscapes and wildlife are, in fact, deeply political acts that are essential to state-building for many countries in the postcolonial Global South. Conservation itself is political and impacts human populations and societies, irrespective of its ecological or biological impacts. In her new book, she explores how conservation is a way that states exert their authority over people, places, and resources and how it structures economic relationships at local, national, and global levels.

Dr. LaRocco, Ph.D., teaches classes in African politics, environmental politics, the politics of global development, and international relations at Florida Atlantic University's Department of Political Science. . Her research interests include the study of political implications of biodiversity conservation and other environmental policies, specifically in regions of the postcolonial Global South. She has conducted fieldwork in southern Africa for over a decade, most recently as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar in Botswana and Zimbabwe.

Dr. Michael Horswell engages in conversation with Dr. Annette LaRocco, an associate professor in FAU’s Department of Political Science. In this upcoming episode, Dr. LaRocco discusses several topics, including conservation politics, how studying abroad helped shape her career, and her new book, The Nature of Politics: State Building and the Conservation Estate in Postcolonial Botswana.

Why do states choose to set aside land for national parks and other protected areas? How do these decisions impact their citizens and structure their economies? How and why do states decide to make governing their environments a political priority? These are questions explored by Annette LaRocco in her book The Nature of Politics: State Building and the Conservation Estate in Postcolonial Botswana. Drawing on hundreds of interviews and years of extensive fieldwork in Botswana, LaRocco argues that the seemingly mundane processes of conserving landscapes and wildlife are, in fact, deeply political acts that are essential to state-building for many countries in the postcolonial Global South. Conservation itself is political and impacts human populations and societies, irrespective of its ecological or biological impacts. In her new book, she explores how conservation is a way that states exert their authority over people, places, and resources and how it structures economic relationships at local, national, and global levels.

Dr. LaRocco, Ph.D., teaches classes in African politics, environmental politics, the politics of global development, and international relations at Florida Atlantic University's Department of Political Science. . Her research interests include the study of political implications of biodiversity conservation and other environmental policies, specifically in regions of the postcolonial Global South. She has conducted fieldwork in southern Africa for over a decade, most recently as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar in Botswana and Zimbabwe.

Dr. Michael Horswell engages in conversation with Dr. Kyle Prescott, a Professor of Music and a Conductor at Florida Atlantic University. In this upcoming episode, Dr. Prescott talks about his recent experience conducting the iconic Rhapsody in Blue, a 100-Year Tribute to Gershwin's American classic at the Festival of Arts Boca.

Dr. Kyle Prescott holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in Conducting from The University of Texas at Austin. He's presented his research internationally at peer-reviewed conferences, including once for the National Security Agency, regarding research into US Navy Band Musicians in the world of cryptology in the mid- 20th Century.

In demand as a teacher of conducting, Dr Prescott has worked with over 450 professional conductors in the refinement of their craft. He is President-elect of the Florida Collegiate Music Education Association, a past Florida Chair of the College Band Directors National Association, Past President of The Symphonia Orchestra, is Conductor and Music Director of the professional Florida Wind Symphony and FWS Jazz Orchestra, as well as the Boca Festival of the Arts Jazz Orchestra, whose inaugural performance included the original 1924 version of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue discussed in this ‘In Conversation’ podcast with Dean Horswell.

Dr. Michael Horswell engages in conversation with Dr. Kyle Prescott, a Professor of Music and a Conductor at Florida Atlantic University. In this upcoming episode, Dr. Prescott talks about his recent experience conducting the iconic Rhapsody in Blue, a 100-Year Tribute to Gershwin's American classic at the Festival of Arts Boca.

Dr. Kyle Prescott holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in Conducting from The University of Texas at Austin. He's presented his research internationally at peer-reviewed conferences, including once for the National Security Agency, regarding research into US Navy Band Musicians in the world of cryptology in the mid- 20th Century.

In demand as a teacher of conducting, Dr Prescott has worked with over 450 professional conductors in the refinement of their craft. He is President-elect of the Florida Collegiate Music Education Association, a past Florida Chair of the College Band Directors National Association, Past President of The Symphonia Orchestra, is Conductor and Music Director of the professional Florida Wind Symphony and FWS Jazz Orchestra, as well as the Boca Festival of the Arts Jazz Orchestra, whose inaugural performance included the original 1924 version of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue discussed in this ‘In Conversation’ podcast with Dean Horswell.