Dr. Belén Norona

Biography

María Belén Noroña is a political ecologist working at the intersection of grassroots movements and research in the field of environmental engineering and territorial feminisms. She applies her work to Indigenous territorial governance and investigates the spatial aspects of race and gender inequality, non-representational cartography, and networked space and place. Holding a Ph.D. from the University of Oregon, her research trajectory blends activism with interdisciplinary research and education in the communities of the Andes in Latin America. Currently, she collaborates with rural Indigenous communities in Ecuador affected by hydrocarbon extraction, focusing on the co-production of research agendas that align with Indigenous perspectives and needs. Her teaching incorporates decolonial feminist methods to create a curriculum that inclusively addresses marginalized voices. Noroña's work seeks to make research relevant to social justice processes and engages students in examining the dynamics of environmental injustice and social difference within spatial contexts.

Research Interests