For questions on Strategic Research Project proposal submissions or for assistance identifying potential collaborators, please contact AlianzaMXResearch@ucr.edu.
Interested in submitting a Strategic Research Project proposal?
Eligibility
Proposals must be led by a UC principal investigator (PI) and include collaborators from at least one other UC campus and at least one partner institution in Mexico. Alianza MX can assist with identifying collaborators across the UC system as well as at Mexican partner institutions.
Funding
Proposal submissions can request up to $200,000 USD in seed funding over a period of up to 24 months. Funds can support field research, conferences and workshops, and project staff salaries and benefits, but may not be used for student tuition and fees or to cover department overhead or indirect costs.
Alianza MX opens a call for proposals in the Fall and the application period remains open through the Winter. Funding awards are announced in Summer and research projects begin during the Fall.
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Timeline of the Call
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Date
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Launch of the call / Application period opens
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December 2025
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Submission deadline / Application period closes
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February 2026
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Announcement of projects selected for funding
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June 2026
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Start date for supported activities
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September 2026
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2025-27 Project Cycle
Alianza Bienestar
This project designs culturally relevant depression screening tools to improve adolescent mental health in Mexico and among Spanish-speaking youth in California. It implements a digital mental health intervention through a WhatsApp-based chatbot on a mental health crisis helpline, ensuring accessible support for high-risk adolescents and establishing a pilot program that can potentially be expanded to connect a broader range of adolescents with mental health resources.
Principal Investigator: Nadia Diamond-Smith, UC San Francisco
UC Collaborators: UC Los Angeles
MX Collaborators: Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública (INSP), Instituto Nacional de Psiquiatría Ramón de la Fuente Muñiz (INPRFM), El Colegio de la Frontera Norte (COLEF)
2025-27 Project Cycle
Strengthening the Biosafety of Mexican Native Maize Varieties on the Southern Border
This project analyzes the potential presence and identity of transgenes in native maize varieties from the Mexico-Guatemala border region, with the objective of conserving maize diversity and establishing food sovereignty in maize for human consumption. Maize sampling in the states of Chiapas and Tabasco will also guide the development of a seed sampling guide for Guatemalan grassroots partner organizations and assist those organizations with transgene detection and identification in key border regions.
Principal Investigator: Liza Grandia, UC Davis
UC Collaborators: UC Santa Barbara
MX Collaborators: Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana – Xochimilco (UAM)
Additional Collaborators: Red Nacional Por la Defensa de la Soberanía Alimentaria en Guatemala (REDSAG), Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala – Petén (USAC), Bufete para Pueblos Mayas, Asociación de Comunidades Campesinas Indígenas para el Desarrollo Integral de Petén (ACDIP)
2025-27 Project Cycle
Genomic Profiling of Tuberculosis Isolates Among High-Burden and Vulnerable Populations in Mexico
This project focuses on the structure of the bacterial population causing tuberculosis in Mexico, which will provide insight on the dynamics of transmission in local communities as well as cross-border transmission between Baja California and California. Genomic studies will provide information about the genetic markers associated with drug resistant tuberculosis, providing a baseline for monitoring complex transmission dynamics.
Principal Investigator: Midori Kato-Maeda, UC San Francisco
UC Collaborators: UC Santa Cruz
MX Collaborators: Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC), Secretaría de Salud de Baja California, Centro Ambulatorio para la Prevención y Atención en SIDA e Infecciones de Transmisión Sexual (CAPASITS), Instituto de Psiquiatría de Baja California (IPBC), Comisión Estatal del Sistema Penitenciario de Baja California (CESISPE)
2025-27 Project Cycle
Development of Fuel Model Maps and Prescribed Fire Management Strategies
This project develops fuel model maps for the Comiteca Tojolabal Plateau in Chiapas, Mexico, that improve understanding of fire behavior in the Lagunas de Montebello National Park through field work and remote sensing. By employing experimental plot burning as well as emissions modeling, it aims to improve the technical use of fire for ecological purposes and risk reduction, as well as to build a proposal for a local burning program.
Principal Investigator: Jeanette Cobian, UC Davis
UC Collaborators: UC Los Angeles
MX Collaborators: El Colegio de la Frontera Sur (ECOSUR), Comisión Nacional Forestal (CONAFOR), Parque Nacional Lagunas de Montebello, Colectivo Los Sin Fuego
2024-2026 Project Cycle
Robotic Solutions for Sustainable Berry Harvesting
This project provides Mexican and California growers with technological solutions for monitoring the health and maturity of berries grown in greenhouses, harvesting berries using articulated robots and computer vision systems, and efficient handling of harvested berries through automated vehicles.
Principal Investigator: Ricardo Sanfelice, UC Santa Cruz
UC Collaborators: UC Merced
MX Collaborators: Tecnológico de Monterrey, Grupo Los Cerritos, Avoberrys del Valle
Additional Collaborators: Driscoll’s, Inc.
2024-2026 Project Cycle
Nexus of water, food, and energy systems in California and Mexico
This project generates roadmaps for innovation and funding, including through proposal writing workshops and the engagement with stakeholders that can provide additional funding. The first thematic focus of collaborative innovation is on the nexus of potable water and energy systems, building pilot-scale digital twins of water systems in Monterrey, Guadalajara, and Mexico City.
Principal Investigator: Frank Loge, UC Davis
UC Collaborators: UC Berkeley
MX Collaborators:
Tecnológico de Monterrey, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Servicios de Agua y Drenaje de Monterrey (SADM), Sistema Intermunicipal de los Servicios de Agua Potable y Alcantarillado – Jalisco (SIAPA), Sistema de Aguas de la Ciudad de México (SACMEX), Asociación Nacional de Empresas de Agua y Saneamiento (ANEAS)
2024-2026 Project Cycle
Indigenous Women’s Digital Histories and Storytelling for Communal Survival
This project trains indigenous women as digital archivists, builds a digital archive that includes both oral histories and photos, and distributes the information through a published collection and community history convening.
Principal Investigator: Maylei Blackwell, UC Los Angeles
UC Collaborators: UC Santa Cruz
MX Collaborators:
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), National Coordinating Committee of Indigenous Women (CONAMI)
2024-2026 Project Cycle
Promoting Biomedical Research Collaborations with Mexico
This project expands research collaboration between the UC and Mexican partners on Type II diabetes, with a particular focus on expanding student research training in molecular techniques. It incorporates various techniques for studying diabetes, including both cellular mechanisms as well as behavioral and social issues that may help explain the prevalence of metabolic disorders among Mexican immigrants to the United States.
Principal Investigator: Rudy Ortiz, UC Merced
UC Collaborators: UC Berkeley
MX Collaborators: Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición Salvador Zubirán (INCMNSZ); Universidad de Sonora, Campus Navojoa (UNISON)
2023-2025 Project Cycle
Perceptions of Mexican Democratic Institutions: A Survey of Experts and Citizens
This project expands on the Survey of the Quality of Mexican Democracy (ENCADE), which polled experts and a national representative sample in 2021 on the quality of democracy across nine dimensions. The first round of the survey studied the relationship between voter support for democracy and views of elites, while subsequent rounds will study differences among states and how the 2024 elections may affect perceptions of electoral institutions, political parties, and media.
Principal Investigator: Emilie Hafner-Burton, UC San Diego
UC Collaborators: UC Merced, UC Santa Barbara
MX Collaborators: Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)
Research
Webinar: “How Mexico Views Its Democracy: Key Findings from the 2024 ENCADE Survey,” October 2024
Researchers presented the results of the second annual survey on democracy in Mexico, ENCADE, conducted just ahead of the historic 2024 presidential election.
2023-2025 Project Cycle
California-Mexico Border Infrastructure Analysis: Medium- and Heavy-Duty Zero-Emission Vehicles
This project analyzes scenarios for commercial medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission vehicle (MHD ZEV) deployment for cross-border freight operations between the U.S. state of California and the Mexican state of Baja California, including paths for developing ZEV infrastructure in key transport corridors and communities. UC researchers participate in the Heavy-Duty Vehicles Working Group of the US-Mexico Task Force on Zero-Emission Vehicles, established in 2022 to develop a managed industry transition that ensures prosperity, competitiveness, and inclusion for the binational auto industry.
Principal Investigator: Arun Raju, UC Riverside
UC Collaborators: UC Irvine
MX Collaborators: Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC); Secretaría de Infraestructura, Comunicaciones y Transportes (SICT); Asociación Nacional de Productores de Autobuses, Camiones y Tractocamiones (ANPACT); Asociación Nacional de Transporte Privado (ANTP); Cámara Nacional de Autotransporte de Carga (CANACAR)
Research
Technical Advisory Committee: “Key Takeaways,” June 2024
2023-2025 Project Cycle
UC‐Mexico Farm Labor Research Cluster: Climate Change, Health, Productivity and Well Being
This project aims to improve understanding of how environmental drivers in both California and Mexico impact farm laborers and other participants in the food supply chain such as food distributors, ag-tech innovators, and others. It also studies policy approaches that could benefit food security and nutrition in both regions when applied at scale.
Principal Investigator: Federico Castillo, UC Berkeley
UC Collaborators: UC Davis, UC Irvine, UC Los Angeles, UC San Diego, UC San Francisco
MX Collaborators: Colegio de Michoacan (COLMICH), Colegio de la Frontera Norte (COLEF), Universidad Autónoma de Guerrero (UAGRO), Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)
Research
Project website: UC-Mexico Farm Labor Research Cluster
2023-2025 Project Cycle
Bio-Regional Planning: Climate Action Research, Planning and Design in Cali-Baja
This project reinforces efforts to complete a bio-regional action plan for the Cali-Baja Bioregion spanning the US-Mexico Border and Tribal lands (the Cali-Baja BioREGPlan 2030). The Plan’s ultimate purpose is to identify and document transformational change that can benefit people and communities vulnerable to the climate emergency.
Principal Investigator: Keith Pezzoli, UC San Diego
UC Collaborators: UC Davis, UC Los Angeles
MX Collaborators: Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada (CICESE), Colegio de la Frontera Norte (COLEF), Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC)
Research
Project website: Tri-National Bioregional Framework for Climate Adaptation and Resilience
2022-2024 Project Cycle
Electrification of Transport: Challenges and Opportunities for the US-Mexico Transportation Industry
This project studied how policy shaped the needs and capabilities of zero emissions vehicle (ZEV) producers in the US and Mexico, as well as how increasing demand for ZEV accelerated the binational transition to new technologies. UC researchers also participated in the Light-Duty Vehicles Working Group of the US-Mexico Task Force on Zero-Emission Vehicles, established in 2022 to develop a managed auto industry transition that ensures binational prosperity, competitiveness, and inclusion.
Principal Investigator: Gil Tal, UC Davis
MX Collaborators: Colegio de Sonora (COLSON), Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (SRE)
Research
Research report & Policy brief: "Implications of Global EV Adoption Targets for Mexico Light Duty Auto Industry," April 2023
Gil Tal, UC Davis; Francisco Pares, UC Davis; Pablo Busch, UC Davis; Minal Chandra, UC Davis
Policy brief: "US-Mexico Second-hand Vehicle Trade: Implications for Responsible EV End-of-Life Management and Material Circularity in North America," April 2023
Francisco Pares, UC Davis; Galym Iskakov, UC Davis; Alissa Kendall, UC Davis
2022-2024 Project Cycle
Water Resources Management: Improving Climate-Extreme Resilience in Mexico and the United States
This project uses case studies from California and Mexico to explore promising water management alternatives for agriculture, ecosystems, and communities in response to climate extremes, with a strong emphasis on groundwater.
Principal Investigator: Josué Medellín, UC Merced
UC Collaborators: UC Davis, UC Los Angeles
MX Collaborators: Tecnológico de Monterrey, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC), Universidad Autónoma Chapingo, Universidad de las Américas – Puebla (UDLAP), Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo (UMSNH), Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)
Research
Project website: Water Resources Management to Improve Climate Extreme Resilience
White paper: “A Research Agenda for Collaborative Action,” September 2023
Clara Y. Medina, J. Andrés Morandé, Josué Medellín-Azuara, Joshua Viers, Thomas Harmon, Marc Beutel, John Abatzoglou
2022-2024 Project Cycle
Economics of US-Mexico Migration: Policies, Opportunities for Employment, and Economic Growth
This project proposes policies and actions that will maximize the growth and employment potential of immigrant workers, students, and professionals, as well as to evaluate their impact on the communities where they live. UC researchers also organize lectures and mentor graduate students as part of a Summer School on the Economics of International Migration.
Principal Investigator: Giovanni Peri, UC Davis
UC Collaborators: UC Berkeley, UC Merced, UC San Diego
MX Collaborators: Colegio de México, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM), Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Banco de México
Research
Job Market Papers
– Reem Zaiour: “Violence in Mexico, Return Intentions, and the Integration of Mexican Migrants in the US,” November 2023
– Ernesto Tiburcio: “The Local Reaction to Unauthorized Mexican Migration to the US,” October 2023
Working Papers
– Alessandro Caiumi & Giovanni Peri, “Immigration’s Effect on US Wages and Employment Redux,” April 2024
– Giovanni Peri & Reem Zaiour, “Changes in International Immigration and Internal Native Mobility after Covid-19 in the US,” December 2022
– Julian Arteaga & Ashish Shenoy, “Declining Mobility among Mexican-Born Workers in the U.S. Labor Force,” October 2022
– Michael Beine, Giovanni Peri & Morgan Raux, “International College Students’ Impact on the US Skilled Labor Supply,” September 2022
Event: “Summer School on the Economics of Migration: Panel on Migration in Latin America and in Mexico,” September 2023
Presentation: Giovanni Peri, “International Migration and COVID-19," Federal Reserve Bank of Boston Economic Research Conference on Labor Markets During and After the Pandemic, November 2022
Additional Information
For questions regarding project proposals, or for more information on projects in a previous cycle, please contact Alianza MX.
