The APSA Diversity Fellowship Program, formerly the Minority Fellowship Program, was established in 1969 as a fellowship competition to diversify the political science profession. DFP provides support to students from underrepresented backgrounds applying to, or in the early stages of, a PhD program in political science. The goal of the program is to increase the number of scholars from minoritized backgrounds in the discipline and ultimately the professoriate. APSA has once again awarded a new cycle to provide support for PhD students currently in their first or second year as of Spring 2022. Please join us in congratulating the 2022-2023 class of fellows!
Tomas Ocampo is a PhD student in the Politics department at the University of California, Santa Cruz. His primary research interests include social and environmental movements in the US and Latin America, with a particular focus on environmental justice. One project he is working on examines how environmental justice activists and non-governmental organizations engage with the state of California and local governments, and assesses 10 years of environmental justice legislation in California. He is hoping to explore environmental and climate justice movements across Latin America and their strategies of engagement with the state and subnational governments. Prior to joining UCSC, Tomas received his B.A. in Political Science, and Public Policy, and his Master’s in Public Policy from UC Riverside, where he interned for local government agencies and taught writing to undergraduate students. As adjunct faculty in the Political Science department at Riverside City College, he taught courses on American Politics, and the United Nations, while serving as co-advisor for the Model United Nations program. Upon earning his PhD, he hopes to continue teaching critical topics within global environmental politics, international relations, and comparative politics, while supporting and mentoring students of color interested in political science.