Calla Hummel

Calla Hummel studies when and why informal workers organize to lobby the state. More generally, Calla investigates the conditions under which marginalized people form politically powerful interest groups. She uses case studies of informal workers' organizations in La Paz, Bolivia, Sao Paulo, Brazil, and Asuncion, Paraguay. Calla started her research as an undergraduate at the University of Washington in Seattle, and continued it at the Pontificia Universidade Catolica in Sao Paulo, Brazil, before entering UT's graduate program. Calla conducted preliminary fieldwork in La Paz, Sao Paulo, and Asuncion in 2012 and is currently writing her dissertation proposal. Calla's research has been supported by grants from the U.S. Government, the University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Washington.