From L.A. to the East Bay, a student finds her Oaxacan community at Berkeley
Tania Lopez, a second-year landscape architecture student at UC Berkeley, reflects on how ballet folklórico has connected her to her Oaxacan heritage and helped her build community in the East Bay. Growing up in Los Angeles, dance became a vital link to her cultural identity, especially through her involvement in Oaxacan folkloric traditions. At Berkeley, she found belonging through OaxaCal and Ballet Folklórico Reflejos del Sol, and now aims to design inclusive public spaces in underserved neighborhoods.
- ▪Tania Lopez grew up in an Indigenous Oaxacan household in Echo Park, Los Angeles, where she began dancing at age 3.
- ▪She discovered a deeper connection to her Mexican roots through ballet folklórico in high school, a dance form that blends regional folk traditions with ballet and stage performance.
- ▪At UC Berkeley, Lopez joined OaxaCal and Ballet Folklórico Reflejos del Sol, helping her maintain cultural ties and find community.
- ▪Her parents, especially her mother, have been strong supporters of her dance journey, with her mother having been unable to dance as a child in Oaxaca due to financial constraints.
- ▪Lopez hopes to use her landscape architecture education to design safe and connected public spaces for families in lower-income areas of Los Angeles.
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People, Performing arts From L.A. to the East Bay, a student finds her Oaxacan community at Berkeley Architecture student Tania Lopez reflects on ballet folklórico’s role in her life and her goal to design public spaces that foster safety and connection. By Yesenia Ochoa Tania Lopez, a second-year landscape architecture student, hopes to one day design community spaces in Los Angeles where people feel safe and connected. Diego Nicolas Moran/UC Berkeley April 30, 2026 This first-person narrative was written from an interview with Tania Lopez, a second-year landscape architecture student. Have someone you think we should write about? Contact [email protected]. “Since I was 3, dance has been a constant in my life.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Berkeley News.
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