Iván Carrillo is a journalist, documentary maker and producer specializing in science, the environment and the oceans, with over twenty years of experience across the Ibero-American media landscape. He has published and produced work for media outlets such as National Geographic, Knowable Magazine, CNN en Español, Discovery Channel, History Channel, Expansión, NCC Iberoamericano, and El Universal, among many others.

He is the co-founder of Historias Sin Fronteras and has directed documentary series including El futuro del planeta, 1.5 grados para salvar al planeta, La ciencia del fútbol andLa ciencia a prueba.

Carrillo is also the co-founder of the radio program En Común: conocimiento en voz viva, and serves as editor and host of the pioneering program that connects Indigenous journalists with scientists to deliver useful, evidence-based knowledge to rural communities in Mexico.

His work has received international recognition, including the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Award for Excellence in Science Communication 2025, awarded by the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM)—one of the most prestigious honors in the field of science communication. He has also received the Covering Climate Now Award, the TED Countdown Journalism Fellowship, grants from the Pulitzer Center, the National Geographic Society, Earth Journalism Network, and the Knight Science Journalism Fellowship at MIT.

He is currently developing transnational projects focused on marine conservation, climate change and solution-driven narratives.

The post Iván Carrillo appeared first on InquireFirst.

• LinkedIn
• Mail

Luis J. Jiménez is a photojournalist who is refocusing on web design and presenting news on multiple platforms.

His experience ranges from covering Mexico’s armed Zapatista uprising to presidential elections to the tequila industry and Day of the Dead celebrations.

His work has appeared in U.S. newspapers and magazines including The New York Times, the Boston Globe, the Houston Chronicle, the Dallas Morning News, the Austin American-Statesman, The San Diego Union-Tribune and U.S. News & World Report.

His coverage of rural poverty in México was selected as a finalist in the photojournalism category of World Hunger Year’s Harry Chapin Media Awards. Luis now resides in San Diego.

The post Luis J. Jiménez appeared first on InquireFirst.

• Mail

Audrey Aguilar is an event planning specialist who serves as Logistics Director for Symposiums at InquireFirst.  Since joining InquireFirst in 2016, Audrey has directed logistics for journalism workshops in Costa Rica, San Francisco, San Diego and at Stanford University. The workshops were attended by almost 300 journalists from more than 12 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.

For nearly a decade, Audrey has coordinated workshops, private events, forums and movie premieres for numerous organizations and government agencies. In 2009, she worked in the Mexican Senate as an assistant and advisor to the Latin American Parliamentary Committee specializing in international affairs in Latin America and Caribbean.

Audrey worked as for five years as an English and French teacher at the Institute Real de Playas in Tijuana, Mexico. She is also qualified as an English-Spanish Certified Translator.

Early in her career, Audrey interned for the U.S Commercial Service in the U.S Consulate General in Tijuana, Mexico, assisting in commercial trade shows to identify potential import/export opportunities in Tijuana and San Diego.

Audrey earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California. She also participated in an exchange program for European Studies at the Universidad de Castilla La Mancha in Toledo, Spain, on the introduction of Arabic and Islamic studies.

She now resides in San Diego.

The post Audrey Aguilar appeared first on InquireFirst.

• Mail

Julieta Pelcastre is a Mexican journalist with more than 23 years of experience in investigative reporting. Her articles have appeared in numerous publications related to politics, migration, corruption, drug trafficking, security and defense, including Journalists for Transparency, 100 Reporters, Los Angeles Post-Examiner, Diálogo-America, Cox Newspapers, Mundo Hispánico and Ahora Sí.  For the past seven years she has been reporting on cooperative efforts between the United States and Latin American military.

Julieta also participated in 2018 as a panelist in courses organized by the Reyes Heroles Institute under the supervision of the National Electoral Institute of Mexico. Among the subjects covered were: political marketing and the evolution of social media; public image; and the media and its influence on the public agenda.

In addition, she headed the Organizing Committee of Conference of the International Network of Environmental Lawyers in Mexico City sponsored by the prestigious environmental law firm Vera & Asociados. The 2014 conference resulted in an ideal setting for the beginning of professional and commercial relationships among the more than 120 attendees.

She also collaborated in 2014 with the Institute of the Americas in San Diego, California, in the organization, execution and supervision of the first China-Americas Program congress in Mexico.

Julieta produced the documentary Mexico: Journalists Against Silence. And she was awarded the 2008 José Martí Silver Award for best article (in collaboration with Austin American-Statesman investigative reporter Jeremy Schwartz) by the National Association of Hispanic Publications for a series of articles titled “From Atlanta to Mexico.”

The post Julieta Pelcastre appeared first on InquireFirst.

• Mail

Before joining InquireFirst, Denisse A. Tirado was director of the Institute of the Americas Summer Camp on Science and Innovation. For six years, Denisse helped organize the camp for more than 200 students from 16 Latin American countries, the Caribbean and the U.S. who received scholarships to attend the two-week program. The camp, which is conducted in Spanish, is designed for motivated students who have demonstrated interest in science and desire to go to college, but they need support and motivation from educators.

In 2015, Denisse launched a five-day workshop, complementary to the Science & Innovation Summer Camp, that engages high school science instructors in an idea-generating program designed to promote innovative teaching techniques in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).

Denisse also worked with the Vice President of the Institute of the Americas, S. Lynne Walker, in coordinating logistics for professional development workshops for journalists in Latin America and the Caribbean.

From 2007-2010 Denisse worked in the Office of Academic Support and Instructional Services (OASIS) at the University of California, San Diego. Where she supported underrepresented freshmen students in achieving maximum academic and personal success and satisfaction with first- year college experience via weekly group meetings with a facilitator, an academic counselor, and a mentor. During this time, Denisse also volunteered at Gompers Middle School tutoring 6th grade English.

Denisse has a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies focused on Political Science and a Minor in International Migration Studies from the University of California, San Diego.

Denisse earned her MBA from California State University San Marcos, where she now serves as Director of MBA Operations. Her specialization is business intelligence.

The post Denisse A. Tirado appeared first on InquireFirst.