On Monday, the State Department announced details of President Trump’s promised cuts to foreign aid for the Northern Triangle countries of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, warning that future U.S. funding will require these countries to improve efforts to decrease migration. The announcement comes as the number of Central Americans crossing the southwest U.S. border continues to increase, with 144,000 migrants and asylum seekers taken into custody in May.
Duke University has strong connections to Latin America and the Caribbean. The university offers majors in Spanish and Portuguese, and boasts an active Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Sanford faculty members have conducted research and training in Paraguay, Mexico, Haiti, Brazil, Panama, and other countries in the region.
Professor Subhrendu Pattanayak serves on the International Scientific Advisory Board for the Center for Socioeconomic Impact of Environmental Policies, a project sponsored by the Universidad Católica de Chile and the Universidad de Talca. The center focuses on environmentally relevant policies and government programs and interventions that affect the natural environment.
Felipe Magofke MIDP’15 spent his summer in Colombia working with Bive, a health care membership service that provides low-income workers and their families with faster and cheaper access to medical care.
In addition, faculty members with Sanford’s Duke Center of International Development offer executive training programs in several countries in the region.

Could foreign aid help stop Central Americans from coming to the U.S.? Here’s what you need to know.

Camping under a tent is a rite of passage for many Duke students. Young people brave the elements for months in a tent community called Krzyzewskiville (K-Ville) in order to attend the Duke/UNC game at Cameron Indoor Stadium.