IRN Latin America

The International Research network in Latin America (IRN-Latin America) aims to connect individuals doing research both academic and community based in areas related to same sex-sexualities in the region. As the Latin American LGBTQI community is growing and activism and research throughout the region is becoming more organized, there is a growing need for an international clearinghouse with current academic articles, contact information, web links to projects, archival material and mechanisms for networking on a large international scale. We explore and develop partnerships between academic research institutions and the activist movement working at the grassroots and international levels and encourage feedback from others.

Objectives of the Latin American IRN are both to make a significant contribution to academic scholarship and to promote activism. It aims to create a link between researchers and activists to share knowledge of sexualities by exchanging information, expanding knowledge building and broadening the availability of scholarly material. IRN Latin America supports projects to foster the dynamic exchange and development of academic material on LGBTQI issues such as commissioned articles, writing competitions and virtual reading groups. It also supports regional conferences.

The Latin American region of the IRN has recently been redesigned. The challenges and complexities of the region stems from the significant dimensions of the countries’ Diasporas, including many academics and scholars producing material on matters of gender and sexuality outside the traditional geographic boundaries of the zone. The new Latin American editorial board therefore includes academics, scholars and activists both in the region and Diaspora countries.

The Latin American region of the IRN publishes Sexualidades, a Working Paper Series on Latin American and Caribbean Sexualities. This peer-reviewed series promotes the work of emerging and established scholars writing in English, Spanish, and Portuguese throughout the Latin American and Caribbean regions by publishing, disseminating, and discussing new research on sexualities and genders.

Jasmin Blessing is the IRN Coordinator for the Latin American region.


New IRN board members

• Eliane Borges Berutti - Departamento de Letras Anglo-Germânicas, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
• Rafael de la Dehesa - Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work, City University of New York-College of Staten Island,USA
• María Mercedes Gómez - Department of Sociology and Criminology, Saint Mary’s University, Canada
• Mauro Cabral - Centro de Investigaciones, de la Facultad de Filosofía y Humanidades, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Argentina
• Gabriela Cano - Facultad de Filosofía, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, México
• Sergio Carrara - Centro Latino-Americano em Sexualidade e Direitos Humanos, Universidade do, Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
• Denilson Lopes - Escola de Comunicação, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
• Marcela Sánchez - Proyecto Colombia Diversa, Colombia
• Horacio Sívori - Centro Latino-Americano em Sexualidade, e Direitos Humanos, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
• Bruno Souza Leal - Faculdade de Comunicação,Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brasil
• Juan Marco Vaggione - Consejo de Investigaciones Científicas, y Técnicas de Argentina (CONICET), Facultad de Derecho y Ciencias Sociales,Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Argentina