Emily Colón is a PhD student at the University of Maryland. Her research interests deal with cultural, environmental, and linguistic anthropology. She serves as a teaching assistant for undergraduate courses during the academic year, and an instructor on an anthropological field course, which explores the relationship between indigenous peoples, development, and conservation in Brazil's Amazon forest (more info here) during the summer.

Her research seeks to understand how cultural landscape management, more specifically the fire-making practices of indigenous groups, like the Mebêngokrê-Kayapó, are affected by natural disasters like drought, and the effect these practices have on biodiversity of the Brazilian cerrado. Emily also investigates the use of language, specifically oratory, to understand how the Kayapó negotiate with outsiders and form alliances that contribute to their success in cultural resilience and biodiversity preservation.