Skip to content
Event Demography & Population Studies

2nd Annual Latino Policy Day 2026

This year’s theme frames LPPI’s research as essential civic infrastructure: evidence that protects community health, strengthens economic stability, and supports institutions in responding effectively during disruption and recovery.

2nd Annual Latino Policy Day 2026

Description: UCLA LPPI will host the 2nd annual Latino Policy Day at UCLA, “Building Systems for the New Normal: Data-Driven Solutions When Crisis Becomes Constant,” a convening of students, staff, faculty, alumni, and community members, to highlight groundbreaking LPPI-supported research. The program will feature panels with LPPI faculty experts and issue-specific leaders and conclude with a networking reception.

Date: Thursday, May 14, 2026

Time: 12:00 PM – 5:30 PM PT

Location: UCLA James West Alumni Center (JWAC), Collins Conference Room + Patio, 325 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA 90095

RSVP Here

Program Agenda

Emcee: Lila Burgos, Deputy Director, UCLA LPPI

12:00 PM – 1:00 PM Lunch & Alumni Panel

Introduction by Denisse Rodriguez, policy fellow, UCLA LPPI

Panelist: Tyler Rivera, associate attorney, Olivarez Madruga Law Organization LLP

1:05 PM – 1:10 PM Welcome Remarks 

  • Amada Armenta, director, UCLA LPPI and associate professor, Department of Urban Planning, UCLA

Session 1: Community Health at the Frontlines: Immigrant Services in a Time of Enforcement (45 min) 

Description: This session examines how the current political moment is shaping the experiences of nonprofit service providers delivering social services like health care, mental health support, housing, food assistance, and employment support to immigrant communities. Drawing on provider perspectives, the panelists will discuss how changes in immigration enforcement affects access to care, the wellbeing of the nonprofit workforce, and overall community health. 

1:15 PM – 2:00 PM Presentation & Panel Discussion

Presentation by Tatiana Londoño, assistant professor, Department of Social Welfare, UCLA

Panel Discussion:

  • Moderator: Amada Armenta, director, UCLA LPPI and associate professor, Department of Urban Planning, UCLA
  • Panelist: Tatiana Londoño, assistant professor, Department of Social Welfare, UCLA
  • Panelist: Veronica Arciga Barriga, senior promotoras network regional manager, Vision y Compromiso
  • Panelist: Mayra Joachin, immigrants’ rights project deputy director, ACLU of Southern California

2:00 PM – 2:15 PM Break – Food & Coffee (15 min)

Session 2: Who Rebuilds While the Cameras Leave? Protecting Immigrant Workers in Disaster Zones (45 min)

Description: After every disaster, immigrant workers show up to rebuild, from clearing debris to repairing homes and restoring infrastructure. Yet research from the Eaton Canyon fire reveals a brutal irony, that these workers are experiencing exploitation such as wage theft, unsafe conditions, and lack basic protections. This session examines worker protections and gaps in disaster recovery for immigrant laborers. Panelists will discuss concrete policy interventions that recognize immigrant workers as essential infrastructure and ask what it would look like if labor protections, occupational health standards, and worker organizing were embedded into disaster response from day one. 

2:15 PM – 3:00 PM Presentation & Panel Discussion

Presentation by Michael Mendez, assistant professor, environmental planning and public policy, UC Irvine and Carlo Andre Chunga Pizarro, Ph.D. candidate, Urban Planning & Public Policy, UC Irvine

Panel Discussion:

  • Moderator: Eduardo Garcia, senior advisor for policy and public affairs, UCLA LPPI
  • Panelist: Michael Mendez, assistant professor, environmental planning and public policy, UC Irvine
  • Panelist: Primitiva Hernández, executive director, 805 UndocuFund
  • Panelist: Cinthia N. Flores, former board member, California Agricultural Labor Relations Board

3:00 PM – 3:15 PM Break – Food & Coffee (15 min)

Session 3: Beyond Recovery: Redesigning Economic Infrastructure for Climate Disruption (45 min) 

Description: Wildfires tore through Altadena and Pacific Palisades and exposed how fragile small business ecosystems really are. When neighborhood anchors close, workers lose income and entire commercial corridors face collapse. This session asks how to stop treating environmental disasters as exceptional events and start building economic systems designed for recurring disruption. Panelists will explore how environmental disruption impacts local business and economies and discuss how to create protective infrastructure such as emergency capital pools, flexible procurement policies and community-controlled recovery funds that keep small businesses and workers stable when the next disaster strikes. It isn’t about bouncing back, but about building forward.

3:15 PM – 4:00 PM Presentation & Panel Discussion

Presentation by Silvia González, director of research, UCLA LPPI and Miriam Torres Sanchez, policy fellow, UCLA LPPI

Panel Discussion:

  • Moderator: Silvia González, director of research, UCLA LPPI
  • Panelist: Judy Matthews, president, Altadena Chamber of Commerce & Civic Association 
  • Panelist: Corissa Hernandez, founder & co-founder, Hustle & Heart Collective and Nativo
  • Panelist: Elianne Rodriguez, co-Founder and executive director, Los Angeles Economic Equity & Access Forward

4:00 PM – 4:05 PM Closing Remarks

  • Lila Burgos, deputy director, UCLA LPPI

4:15 PM – 5:30 PM Reception – Taquero & Soft Bar

5:30 PM End 

Parking Instructions

Visiting James West Alumni Center

Parking Location Recommendation: UCLA Parking Structure 4 (P4) located off Westwood Plaza or UCLA Parking Structure 8 (P8) located off Westwood Plaza.

Rate: $17 for the day (cash or card accepted)

Sponsors

 

Interested in becoming a Latino Policy Day sponsor? Learn more!