Candace M. Evans (she/they) is an accounts specialist and research professional at the Natural Hazards Center, University of Colorado Boulder. Evans first joined the Natural Hazards Center in 2019 as a graduate research assistant. In their current role, Evans supports daily operations at the Center, including managing the accounts for the Center’s federally funded Research Award Programs and assisting in planning the annual Natural Hazards Research and Applications Workshop. Additionally, as the Center’s undergraduate research assistant coordinator, Evans works closely with students, many of which are navigating their first involvement with academic research and professional work experience. Evans is also actively engaged in various ongoing projects for the National Science Foundation-supported CONVERGE facility, and serves as the co-lead developer of the CONVERGE Training Modules Series. Several of these modules have also been supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Evans is currently a PhD candidate in the Department of Sociology at the University of Colorado at Boulder. They received their bachelor's degree in sociology and psychology from McMurry University in 2016 and their master's degree in applied sociology from the University of Massachusetts-Boston in 2018. Their dissertation research is focused on the construction of medical knowledge and expertise and the implications for public health. Evans is also actively engaged in activist and advocacy circles for chronic illness and disability rights, where they draw on sociological insights and their own embodied experiences to raise awareness for invisible chronic illness and disability conditions and the unique needs and challenges of these groups during disaster and disaster recovery.