Latin American and
Native American (LANA) ERG

Mission

The purpose of the LANA ERG is to:

  • Advance a diverse and inclusive work environment for Latin American and Native American employees

  • Develop a community of employees to celebrate the diverse cultures and unique gifts that Latin American and Native Americans bring to Berkeley Lab

  • Increase visibility and awareness of the LANA community through internal and external activities

  • Attract, retain, empower, and inspire Latin American and Native American employees to achieve their fullest potential across the spectrum of employment opportunities at Berkeley Lab

  • Bring awareness to Latin American and Native American students to STEM and Operations fields

Activities

  • Celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month and Indigenous Peoples Day

  • Celebrate Day of the Dead

  • Speakers

  • Movies

Past News & Events

Member Highlights

Armando Casillas

Armando Casillas, of the Building Technology and Urban Systems Division in the Energy Technologies Area, has worked at the Lab for a little over one year. He is a Scientific Engineering Associate working on a few projects related to grid-interactive efficient buildings. Learn more about Casillas as part of Elements’ Hispanic Heritage Month series.

Daniela Ushizima

Daniela Ushizima started at the Lab as a postdoc 13 years ago and is now a staff scientist working with machine learning and computer vision for scientific image analysis and autonomous experimentation reliant on pattern recognition. Ushizima is also the recipient of a Director’s Achievement Award and a Women@The Lab Award. Learn more about Dani as part of Elements’ Hispanic Heritage Month series.

Blanca Bocobo

Blanca Bocobo’s father wanted the American dream for his family, so he walked from Michoacan, Mexico to Stockton, Calif. to find work. Bocobo, a 14-year Lab veteran with the Benefits office in HR, shares this story, and more, in this 3Q4, the last in our Latin American Heritage Month series. Learn more about Blanca as part of Elements’ Hispanic Heritage Month series.

Lino Sanchez

Lino Sanchez has worked at the Lab for two years as a research associate in the Energy Technologies Area. He and his colleagues are addressing the need to make our built environment more resilient and trying to answer questions of how resilience can be measured through intuitive and practical methods and metrics, and how progress towards resilience can be verified statistically. Learn more about Lino as part of Elements’ Hispanic Heritage Month series.

Joselyn Delgado

Joselyn Delgado, an administrator for the Government and Community Relations Office, has worked at the Lab for only seven months, but has already had an important impact on the Lab’s outreach efforts: translating key materials into Spanish to help reach more people in the community. Learn more about Delago as part of Elements’ Hispanic Heritage Month series.

Patricia Valdespino Castillo

Postdoc Patricia Valdespino Castillo conducts research at the intersection of omics and chemical imaging, is at the Lab as part of a UC-Mexico fellowship, and loves communicating about science with youngsters. Learn more about Castillo as part of Elements’ Hispanic Heritage Month series.

Jose Sierra

Jose Sierra is thankful for the sacrifice his parents made after leaving their native Guatemala, searching for a better life for their children. He shares his experiences with co-workers to help broaden their point of view. Learn more about Sierra as part of Elements’ Hispanic Heritage Month series.

Michael Espinosa

Biosciences Area senior administrator Michael Espinosa has empathy for those who feel different. Learn more about Espinosa as part of Element’s Hispanic Heritage Month series.

Merlin Lopez

Merlin Lopez, an electrical coordinator for the ALS-U project, emigrated to the U.S. from El Salvador, stays connected to his culture through food and music, and counts his parents as role models. Learn more about Lopez as part of Elements’ Hispanic Heritage Month series. Full Story>>

Steering Committee

Executive Sponsor

Blake Simmons, Division Director, Biological Systems and Engineering

Membership