Iole Pina Fontana

Iole Fontana is Tenure Assistant professor of Political Science and a former Fulbright Schuman Scholar at the Center of Inter-American Border Studies, University of Texas at El Paso. Her research focuses on comparative analyses of migration governance and crisis management at the EU-Mediterranean and US–Mexico borders;

She is the Principal Investigator for the Research Group- BORDER-AI AI-Driven Mapping of Migration Governance: Comparing Border Control Instruments at the US-Mexico and EU-Mediterranean Frontiers, Financed by University of Catania, SYR-AI, Supporting Young Researchers through Artificial Intelligence” (2026-2028).

Previous positions:

Consultant, International Organization for Migration IOM Italy. Project D4CAFS, Diaspora for Climate Change.

Fulbright Schuman Scholar, Center for Inter-American Border Studies, University of Texas at El Paso
Assistant Professor and Field Researcher on Climate Change and Migration, Department of Political and Social Sciences, University of Catania