Sahara Zitlali Vilchis

I am a PhD candidate in Biological Anthropology. My current research sits at the intersection of ethics, bioethics, genomics, and biological anthropology. I use text-mining approaches to analyze ethics and methods in anthropological genomics articles. My research interests are rooted in a biocultural approach to science, ethics, and justice that integrates Indigenous and Community Knowledge. I have direct lab experience analyzing the microbial composition of dental calculus from ancestral populations and fecal matter from contemporary elephants. As a teaching assistant in Organismal Biology, I have experience translating biological science to pre-medical students. I am from Puvunga/Tongva Lands (Long Beach), California, and my alma mater is the University of California, Dominguez Hills. Go Toros! My other research interests include landscape, abolition, embodiment, migration, incarceration, food access, and the Mex/US border, with perspectives grounded in world-building and grounded normativity.