I completed my PhD in Sociology in 2012 at the University of Glasgow. My doctoral research consisted of an exploration of the lived-experiences of growing older in Mexico underpinned by a life-course feminist perspective and a cross-cultural approach. My study focused on uncovering the deeply held cultural values and assumptions about old age as well as identifying the socio-economic and cultural structures shaping and constraining the personal experiences of ageing amongst thirty-two Mexican women aged 60 and over. Most recently, as a Research Associate within The Urban Institute, Heriot-Watt University, I was involved in the ESRC-funded UK-Brazil research project ‘Place Age’ (2016-2019) [www.placeage.org]. In this post, I gained further research experience using community-based participatory methods with older adults such as go-along interviews, which involve photo and video recording activities; photo-diaries and photo elicitation methods; semi-structured in-depth interviews, mapping workshops, knowledge cafes, and roundtables with policymakers. In this role, a key aspect to progress was identifying and building trust and collaboration with community organisations and various stakeholders (e.g. key older adults; community workers, service providers, policymakers).

Currently I collaborate with the ESRC-CONACYT funded research project looking at ‘smart city solutions for managed adaptation and monitoring of hydro-meteorological climate change related risk in Mexico’, at the Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, University of Edinburgh.