Dr. Gloriana Rodriguez Alvarez, King’s College London, United Kingdom
Dr. Gloriana Rodriguez Alvarez is an academic at King’s College London, specializing in security, development, gender studies, and prison reform. She holds a DPhil in Security and Development from King’s College London (2022), where she explored authoritarian followers, mass incarceration, and the experiences of transgender women in prisons. Her previous studies include a DPhil in Latin American Studies from Universidad Nacional Costa Rica (2019) and an MA in Human Rights from Universidad Estatal a Distancia de Costa Rica. Dr. Rodriguez Alvarez has contributed extensively to publications on social movements, gender, decolonial theory, and Indigenous rights. She also lectures at the African Leadership Centre at King’s College, focusing on leadership, governance, and global security. Her research has been recognized with multiple awards, including the 2023 FCRJ Research Award. Dr. Rodriguez Alvarez’s fieldwork includes extensive research in Guatemala and Costa Rica, addressing gender-based violence and human rights in marginalized populations.
Publication Profile
Orcid
Education
Dr. Gloriana Rodríguez Álvarez is an accomplished scholar with a rich academic background. She earned her DPhil in Security and Development from King’s College London in 2022, focusing on authoritarianism, governance, and gender through a study of cis and transgender women in Guatemala. Her thesis was supervised by Professor Funmi Olonisakin. Dr. Rodríguez Álvarez also holds a DPhil in Latin American Studies (2019) from Universidad Nacional Costa Rica, where she graduated Summa Cum Laude. Her research spans social movements, Indigenous rights, decolonial theory, and legal pluralism. She has conducted extensive field research in Guatemala and Bolivia. 📚🌍⚖️
Teaching Experience
Dr. Gloriana Rodríguez Álvarez has extensive teaching experience, particularly in leadership, development, and peace education. Since 2022, she has been a Lecturer at the African Leadership Centre (ALC) at King’s College London, teaching courses such as Governance of Security, Research Methods in Global Leadership, and Gender Leadership and Society. She also coordinates dissertations and serves as Senior Tutor for Global Institutes. Previously, she was a Graduate Teaching Assistant at King’s College London, where she taught various undergraduate courses, including Governance of Security, Critical Geopolitics, and Global Politics. 🌍📚👩🏫
Awards and Grants
Dr. Gloriana Rodríguez Álvarez has received several prestigious awards and grants throughout her career. In 2023, she was awarded the FCRJ Research Award for Regional Scoping Studies (£9,000) and received a ‘Recognition Award’ from King’s College London for outstanding contributions during the 2022/23 academic year. She also earned the King’s College London Teaching Excellence Award in 2022, voted by students. Dr. Rodríguez Álvarez has been granted multiple project and research funds, including €17,500 for evaluating women’s sentencing in Costa Rica’s War on Drugs and €5,000 for examining indigenous rights protection. 🏅💡📜
Research Focus
Dr. Gloriana Rodríguez Álvarez’s research focuses on authoritarianism, governance, gender, social justice, and prison reform, particularly in the context of Central American societies. Her work delves into marginalized voices, including the experiences of cisgender and transgender women in prisons, exploring issues like incarceration, transfemicide, and indigenous rights. She engages with decolonial theory and legal pluralism, emphasizing the need for transformative justice. Dr. Rodríguez Álvarez’s interdisciplinary approach integrates queer theory, leadership studies, and social movements to advocate for legal reform and the empowerment of vulnerable groups. 📚⚖️🌍🏳️🌈
Publication Top Notes
- “Ethical considerations in researching marginalized voices: a focus on women and gender-diverse individuals in Central American prison” (2024) 🏳️🌈📚
- “A plurinational transformation: an entanglement between change and continuity” (2023) 🌍🔄
- “From Victimization to Incarceration: Transgender Women in Costa Rica” (2023) ⚖️🏳️🌈
- “In the Name of Vicky: Prosecuting Transfemicide in Honduras” (2022) ⚖️💔
- “From Victimization to Incarceration: Transgender Women in Costa Rica” (2022) 🏳️🌈📜
- “The Battle for Guatemala” (2020) ⚔️🌎
- “The Battle for Guatemala: Multilevel Governance and the Nation-state” (2020) 🇬🇹⚖️
- “The Subalterns Dream and Defy” (2019) 🛏️💪
- “¿Cosa de hombres?: fútbol y género” (2019) ⚽️🚻
- “Privadas de libertad, vulnerabilidades extremas: caso de Costa Rica” (2016) ⚖️🇨🇷
- “Eurocentrismo y Relaciones Internacionales: reflexiones acerca de la decolonialidad de la disciplina” (2015) 🌐🔄
- “Derechos descolonizados: Una constitución pluriversal” (2015) 🌍📜