I am an interdisciplinary geographer serving as a postdoctoral researcher at CONACYT (Mexican Research Council) within the Humanities and Sustainable Development Management departments at Universidad Autónoma de Guerrero, located in Acapulco and Chilpancingo, Mexico. I earned my PhD in Human Geography and Urban Studies from the London School of Economics (LSE) in 2019, and hold an MA in Rhetoric and Performance Studies from California State University, Los Angeles. I am currently an editor for the journal City: Analysis of Urban Change, Theory, Action. Since early 2024, I have been a Visiting Fellow in the Department of Methodologies.

Research Interests

I am a scholar engaged in exploring the intersections of racial capitalism, environmental humanities, and Afro-Indigeneity through the lens of coastal geographies. My work is driven by a commitment to unearth the subtle and overt narratives that shape the lives of Afro-Indigenous geographies in coastal settings, focusing on how these narratives intersect with global environmental and economic systems. Using ethnography with performance oriented methods, I strive to capture the lived experiences and expressive practices that define and sustain these spacetimes, aiming to bring forth a transformative perspective on how indigenous knowledge and cultural practices confront and navigate the forces of racial capitalism.

Coastal Geographies and Racial Capitalism
My current research delves into the dynamic landscapes of coastal cities, where the harsh realities of racial capitalism meet the resilience of Afro-Indigenous communities. In a project titled "Coastal Commons: Afro-Indigneous Urban Solidarities," I examine how these communities harness their historical and cultural legacies to resist and reshape their socio-economic realities. This study is grounded in participatory and collaborative research methods, engaging directly with community members to co-create knowledge that not only documents but also contests their marginalisation in broader environmental and economic discourses. Supported by a grant from the Urban Studies Foundation, this work not only maps the physical geographies but also traces the temporal geographies—how past injustices and resistances shape present struggles and future aspirations.

Participatory Methods in Environmental Humanities
Expanding upon my engagement with coastal geographies, I also focus on the role of environmental change impacting these regions. My approach integrates environmental humanities with participatory research to foster a deeper understanding of how climate change and ecological degradation are experienced and resisted at the community level. In collaboration with local artists and activists, my research produces visual essays and performance pieces that articulate the complex relationship between people and their changing landscapes. This work not only highlights the immediate impacts of environmental injustice but also mobilises community-led responses that are rooted in traditional knowledge and contemporary activism.

Publications

Cornish, F., Breton, N., Moreno-Tabarez, U. et al. Participatory action research. Nat Rev Methods Primers 3, 34 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43586-023-00214-1

Moreno-Tabarez, U., Acevedo-Guerrero, T., Sawyer, L., Madden, D., Richter, A., Zhao, Y., … Gibbons, A. (2023). Pluriversal urbanisms. City, 27(5–6), 691–696. https://doi.org/10.1080/13604813.2023.2276600

Moreno-Tabarez, U. (2023). rural hauntings, urban spectres: lyrical reflections of a border dweller. City, 27(1–2), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1080/13604813.2023.2181542

Moreno-Tabarez, U., Cabrera-Tena, U., and López Ojeda, M.C. (2024, forthcoming) Afro-Indigenous harvests: Cultivating participatory agroecologies in the coastal and mountain regions of Guerrero, Mexico. Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene 12.1.