Sandra Jazmin Barragan Contreras

I completed a BA in International Business from the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN) in Mexico. After a couple of years working in different sustainability and development projects in Mexico and Brazil, I returned to higher education though a CONACYT funded Master’s in International Development and Environmental Change at the University of Sheffield - joining the Geography Department in 2016. During that year, I combined practical and theoretical research in migration, gender, and international volunteer tourism in rural communities in Nepal and Peru. Currently, I am pursuing a PhD in Human Geography, investigating the energy transition in Mexico from an energy justice perspective. Along with my PhD, I have worked as a Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) and International Student Ambassador at the University of Sheffield. 

Towards a people-led energy transition. Exploring energy justice in Yucatan Mexico

"Energy transitions are shaped by different worldviews, interests, and values. Achieving more socially just sustainable energy transitions around the globe necessitates an evaluation of energy justice principles from a wide range of different perspectives. While existing literature provides rich conceptualisations and insights into energy justice debates, those theorisations remain dominated by conceptions of justice and theories of development from Western currents of thought. Applying these theorisations of energy justice to the formulation and implementation of energy policies in developing countries - where levels of complexity might vary widely- can lead to damaging outcomes. Still, insufficient attention has been paid to further develop and expand empirical and theoretical approaches of energy justice based in the Global South.

Drawing upon a qualitative in-depth case study, this research seeks to contribute to cover this gap by investigating (in)justice perceptions and experiences in the implementation of two solar and two wind large scale projects in rural and indigenous communities in Yucatan, Mexico. Utilising data from semi-structured interviews, participant observation and secondary data analysis, I explore how can actors, policies and practices intersect to form a more socially just and sustainable energy transition."

Supervisors: Matt Watson and Daniel Hammett