Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Studies

Dr. Maria Carinnes Alejandria is an anthropologist whose research focuses on disaster studies and health inequalities in Southeast Asia. She is currently an Assistant Professor at Universiti Brunei Darussalam, where she examines the social dimensions of disasters and public health, particularly in relation to vulnerable communities. 

She earned her PhD in Anthropology from the University of the Philippines Diliman, where she explored the nexus of flooding and food insecurity affecting older adults in informal settlements in Manila. Her work looks at how environmental hazards intersect with socio-economic vulnerabilities in urban areas. 

Dr. Alejandria is affiliated with several research institutions. She is a Global Fellow at the Brown University Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Studies, a Residential Fellow at Loughborough University Institute of Advanced Studies, and a Fellow at Social Weather Stations. She is also part of the Just Futures Collaborative as a Steering Committee member. 

She has published and edited special issues on topics related to complex disasters, humanitarian coordination, food security, pediatric tuberculosis, mental health, and aging. Her edited volumes include Disaster Archipelago: Locating Vulnerability and Resilience in the Philippines and Aging in the Global South: Challenges and Opportunities, both of which explore issues of disaster response and social vulnerability. 

Dr. Alejandria is currently leading a research project on flood preparedness in the BIMP-EAGA region (Brunei Darussalam–Indonesia–Malaysia–Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area), focusing on community resilience and adaptive strategies in urban areas.

She has also led projects on social health, disaster resilience, and food security, funded by organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO), Brown University, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), UNAIDS, SEA Junction, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, and the Philippine Department of Science and Technology (DOST). 

Her research continues to examine how disasters shape everyday life in Southeast Asia, emphasizing the need for inclusive and effective responses to environmental and health challenges.