Joseph Trujillo Falcón

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

ABOUT JOSEPH TRUJILLO FALCÓN

Representing one in every five Americans, 68.8 million individuals speak a language other than English at home, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau data. Yet, our emergency systems are predominantly monolingual, reaching only English speakers. If our country is inherently multilingual, why should our emergency system only rely on one language?I am an Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) Department of Climate, Meteorology, and Atmospheric Sciences (CliMAS), in partnership with the Department of Communication. I proudly direct the Advancing Language Equity in the Atmospheric Sciences (ALERTAS) lab at UIUC. I more specifically examine how multilingual speakers receive, understand, and respond to extreme weather and climate hazards.With over five years of experience at NOAA, I have spearheaded policy changes to enhance multilingual communication across government agencies. These achievements have established me as a national leader in this field, culminating in my recognition as the youngest recipient of the 2022 AMS Award for Early Career Professional Achievement.I also serve as the chairperson of the American Meteorological Society (AMS) Committee for Hispanic and Latinx Advancement, where I collaborate with scientific professionals from various fields to establish a Latinx joint network, enhance resources for bilingual meteorologists, and create opportunities for mentorship and professional development within the AMS Latinx community.Beyond the research landscape, I am a bilingual meteorologist for MyRadar, a popular weather application with 50 million downloads. I publish Spanish-language content that reach international audiences, utilizing my video editing and communication skills.My goal is to make science an accessible language for all and to create more opportunities for underrepresented communities to engage in scientific endeavors.