For three years, Ana Patricia Chuc Gamboa worked as a lawyer advising foreign companies that import and export raw materials in her native Mexico. Now she has been awarded an Ontario Trillium Scholarship for her doctoral work at Queen’s Law to study the trade agreements those companies rely on. The scholarship, valued at $40,000 annually for three years, is given to help the best doctoral students from around the world study in the province. 

“While I was in private practice I saw firsthand the importance of free trade agreements because of their economic impact on my country’s development,” says Chuc Gamboa. “However, I also saw how multinational and transnational companies could worsen serious human rights problems.”

This is the reason why she decided to embark on further academic studies. “My Master’s studies showed me that nowadays countries are more concerned about their international reputation and sign international treaties without creating the right conditions for their implementation.” 

At Queen’s she is further developing this research. “I have new questions that must be answered: why is the phenomenon of free trade so uneven and what should governments do about this situation? These questions motivate me to continue.” She is answering them together with her supervisor Professor Bita Amani, an expert in intellectual property, feminist legal theory and private international law.

Chuc Gamboa has a Master’s degree in International Law from the Graduate School of Government and Public Policy – now called the School of Government and Public Transformation – at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education and a second Master’s degree in Constitutional Law from the Autonomous University of Yucatan, where she focused on human rights. 

She views education as an investment in her future. “Queen’s is the ideal place for me to make that investment. It is not only a great university to study at but is also an amazing place with people from around the world that enriches my cultural and social growth.” 

The school’s supportive academic staff also stand out to her. “Last summer I came to the university and I met Professor Michael Pratt, the Law Faculty’s Associate Dean of Graduate Studies and Research at the time, and a wonderful person. He encouraged me to apply and was very helpful during the admission process. If it wasn’t for his help I might not be here today.”

By Anthony Pugh