Programme Officer | International and Innovation Programme
Maria joined IRC as a Programme Officer for the International and Innovation Programme in January 2018. Her work is centred around the development and monitoring of innovative tools for sanitation, particularly in Africa and East Asia. She is also contributes to other projects at IRC, such as the Development on Empowerment of a WASH Index, among others.
Maria has always had a passion for environmental conservation, specifically for water, through her Ph.D. research, which was carried out in the Galapagos Islands with the aim of solving water supply and demand issues. Maria has a B.Sc. in Environmental Engineering, a M.Sc. in Environmental and Energy Management, and a Ph.D. in Water Supply and Demand. She has experience in working with local, regional and national governments, different stakeholders, and in contributing to WASH solutions, especially on the water supply side.
Maria is an Ecuadorian who has lived in The Netherlands for almost six years. She speaks Spanish, English, French, Portuguese and Dutch.