Dr. Paulina Lopez

Glaciologist
UNESCO Paris

Paulina Lopez

Glaciologist

Paulina Lopez has an international academic background and a professional experience in the field of water, acquired at the intersection of natural and social sciences. After being qualified as a cartographer (Santiago, Chile), she obtained a MSc in Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems (Toulouse, France), a MSc and a Ph.D. in Water Sciences (Montpellier, France) and a MA in International Relations (New Delhi, India).

In the framework of her former research, she calculated the future water availability of several glacierized basins of South America (with a special emphasis in Patagonia Region) under climate change scenarios.

Referenced Content

The Desert of the Anthropocene

The Desert of the Anthropocene (2013 – ongoing) is an investigation into the landscapes and desert terrain of the Indira Gandhi Canal and the District of Jaisalmer, in the heart of the Thar Desert, in Rajasthan, India. Addressing themes of loss, modernization, and the political and natural effects of technology on traditional water systems, this case study attends to the assumption that the land is now barren, when it is, in fact, deeply inhabited.

Social Witnessing

These two case studies, presented during The Shape of a Practice, explore two very different landscapes and the changing relationships that create them over time. Artist and researcher Ravi Agarwal and academic Paulina Lopez share an ongoing project that formulates personal memories of Agarwal’s desert homeland near the city of Jaisalmer. Following this, geographer Huiying Ng and urban farmer Michelle Lai focus on the urbanizing landscape of Chiang Mai, Thailand, and its relationship to alternative agroecology.

PUBLICATIONS

  • Garreaud, R., López, P., Mienvielle, M., and Rojas M., 2012. Large Scale Control on the Patagonia Climate. Journal of Climate, (26) pp. 215 – 230.
  • López, P. and Casassa, G., 2011. Recent acceleration of ice loss in the Northern Patagonia Icefield, based on an updated decennial evolution. The Cryosphere Discussion, (5) pp. 3323 – 3381.
  • López, P., Chevallier, P., Favier, V., Pouyaud, B., Ordenes, F. and Oerlemans, J., 2010. A regional view of fluctuations in Glacier length in southern South America. Global and Planetary Change, (71) 1-2, pp. 85 – 108.
  • Casassa, G., López, P., Pouyaud, B. and Escobar, F., 2009. Detection of changes in glacial runoff in alpine basins: examples from North America, central Asia and the Andes (invited paper). Hydrological Processes, (23) pp. 31 – 41.
  • López, P., Sirguey P., Arnaud Y., Pouyaud B., Chevallier P., 2008. Snow cover monitoring in the Northern Patagonia Icefield using MODIS satellite images (2000-2006). Global and Planetary Change, (61), pp. 103 – 16.
  • Suarez, W., Chevallier, P., Pouyaud, B. and López, P., 2008. Modelling the water balance in the glacierized Paron Lake basin (White Cordillera). Hydrological Sciences Journal, (53) 1, pp. 266 – 277.