I stand for: Equity. Human Rights. Decolonization. Diversity. Anti-oppression.
Erick
da Luz Scherf
Author
Educator
Researcher
& Activist
Hello, thank you for visiting this platform!
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I'm Erick, an emerging scholar and researcher in the fields of Social Work & Public Health.
I follow a tradition of critical inquiry and human rights-based approaches to health and social care services.
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I have a passion for research and service at the intersection of international migration, health, and human rights, especially concerning vulnerable groups and historically marginalized populations.
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Personally speaking, my identity as a Brazilian-born individual informs the way I look at a lot of things in life, including the rampant inequities experienced by the populations I study. Growing up poor in South America has fundamentally shaped my worldviews and to this day still influences my theoretical and conceptual orientations toward socioeconomic inequality and health disparities.
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I believe that solutions to society's most pressing social problems should be aimed at fostering structural reforms, radical empathy/solidarity, and collective action at all levels of government and society.
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About me
Right now, I am a Ph.D. student at the University of Alabama School of Social Work.
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I’m originally from Brazil, where I spent my foundational years and completed my undergraduate education in the field of International Relations and Politics. I also lived in Portugal, Norway, and Sweden while I completed my Master of Social Work degree.
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My research and scholarly work have focused on critical inquiry in Social Work and Health Sciences and human rights-based approaches to Health and Social Care Services. In the past, I have contributed to human rights research projects in Denmark and Brazil.
Nowadays, I am a part of The Initiative on Social Work and Forced Migration at Washington University in St. Louis and the Sleep Health Equity (SHE) Research Group at the University of Alabama.
Since I moved to the United States to pursue my doctoral studies, my focus has been on investigating health disparities among minoritized and racialized migrants; especially the role that immigration policy plays in lessening or widening these disparities.
I am a first-generation student, I am the first one in my immediate family to go to university since neither of my parents has finished the fourth grade. I'm also the first to have ever traveled abroad!
In terms of my professional aspirations, I have always wanted to become a university professor. I love the university environment, the intellectual stimulation and flexibility oftentimes attached to academic life. I’ve worked many jobs in my life, but somehow, I always end up coming back to academia. Advancing knowledge on social problems, mentoring students, and helping underserved populations is my purpose in life.
Writing and publishing is an essential part of one's life in academia. I'm a published co-author in at least 4 books. In addition to that, I have published over 30 peer-reviewed articles in academic journals.
"Here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes ... the ones who see things differently -- they're not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo. ... You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things. ... They push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do."
- Steve Jobs