Kathryn Klaas is the Program Manager for the Migration, Remittances, and Development Program. She joined the Inter-American Dialogue in 2020 as an Associate. She previously worked in Guatemala as Technical Advisor for Ak’Tenamit Association’s monitoring and evaluation team, and later with the Central American Institute for Social Research and Development (INCEDES), where she conducted research on regional migrations and supported development initiatives in high migration areas. Prior to her work in Guatemala, she managed skill-building programs for immigrants as Education Coordinator for El Sol, Jupiter’s Neighborhood Resource Center.
Kathryn received her MA in Demography from El Colegio de México in Mexico City where she focused on international population mobility. She graduated valedictorian and summa cum laude from the Wilkes Honors College at Florida Atlantic University with a BA in Liberal Arts and Sciences and a specialization in Latin American Studies.
In recent months, the Inter-American Dialogue has been honored to work with its network of partners to support pandemic response efforts in the Guatemalan communities where we work. Following a generous donation of Covid-19 testing supplies and PPE equipment from the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and Cities Alliance, the Dialogue was proud to facilitate coordination between regional entities, municipal authorities, hospitals, and donors to prioritize needs and distribute supplies.
El 28 de enero del 2021, El Diálogo Interamericano, en colaboración con la Red Nacional de Grupos Gestores de Guatemala-San Marcos, organizó un conversatorio privado, “La migración como elemento del desarrollo integral: Alianzas y prácticas para su inclusión estratégica” con el apoyo de Cities Alliance. El conversatorio se concentró en el caso guatemalteco con el objetivo de socializar y discutir perspectivas planteadas por actores que trabajan con los lugares de origen, destino y retorno.
On October 29, 2020, the second virtual session of the Housing Laboratory on Migration and Cities in Guatemala (LAV for its initials in Spanish) took place. The Housing Laboratory’s objective was to explore the role of urban and land use planning in the context of international migration and return migration. It further considered how these processes can be integrated into Guatemala’s National Housing Council’s (CONAVI) ongoing efforts to update Guatemala’s National Policy on Housing and Human Settlements in order to guarantee access to decent housing and boost local economic development.
ONLINE EVENT:Addressing the Root Causes of Migration from Central America
