About

Tavin Martin is currently working as a research assistant with Professor Susan Ostermann on a research project funded by the National Science Foundation that analyzes building code regulations, hazard-resistant building practices, and government and legal compliance in Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. One of the goals of this project is to determine if future risk and harm in Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico—areas that have historically faced multi-variable naturally occurring hazards such as wind, snow, hurricanes, and fires—can be decreased or limited by introducing strategies that are statistically proven to increase compliance in these local areas. Since the summer after her freshman year, Martin has traveled to Puerto Rico to serve as a volunteer in multiple local organizations including the YMCA of San Juan and the Good Bunny Foundation, study at La Universidad del Sagrado Corazón, and conduct field research alongside Professor Abbie Liel, a primary investigator in the research project from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Martin is using her experience of local Puerto Rican communities and research knowledge of territorial entities and their relationships with countries to contribute to the research project through data collection, analysis, and coding.

Thesis Title: Cultural Perseverance Against Territorial Status: A Comparative Study of Cultural Development and Adaptation in Rapa Nui and Vieques, Puerto Rico under Territorial Statuses

Thesis Adviser(s): Karen Richman and China Sherz

Adviser
Susan Ostermann
Major(s)
Global Affairs
Latino Studies
Minor(s)
Education, Schooling and Society