Institute For Initiatives in Latin America

IILA is about building connections to optimize opportunities. Most important are our external connections: between Mines researchers and researchers at our partner universities and agencies in Latin America, and between our researchers and the constituencies who benefit from the work – local communities, industries, resource managers, and increasingly stressed natural environments. Internally, our connections within Mines can be summarized as “mobilizing resources”: we help link existing Mines research groups (like the Payne Institute for Public Policy, the Critical Materials Institute, and the Humanitarian Engineering Program) with each other. Furthermore, we identify research and academic opportunities in Latin America that would benefit from Mines’ expertise, and our staff and associates provide communication, cultural, political and community engagement expertise to navigate the complicated path to success in international settings.

Since launching in 2022 IILA has managed over $15M in projects, involving over 40 faculty at Mines from Chemistry, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Computer Science, Geology and Geological Engineering, Geophysics, Mining Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Hydrologic Science and Engineering, Humanitarian Engineering and Science, and the Trefny Innovative Instruction Center.

The IILA team has a proven record of conducting cutting-edge applied science that benefits local communities and builds research capacities at partner institutions. Our work goes beyond research to generate something that speaks clearly in any language: “impacto.”

Our Guiding Principles

Every project we manage must meet high standards and demonstrate:

1) Solid science that contributes meaningfully to the world’s understanding of earth, energy, and environment.

2) A strong positive impact on the region, its people, and its environment.

3) Training for emerging scholars at peer institutions to publish high impact research in the areas of applied STEM, with the goal of increasing research capacity and research culture.