Blanca Lucía Prado Named New Director of UNAM's Institute of Geology; Outlines Research Priorities

Blanca Lucía Prado Pano is the new director of the Institute of Geology (IGL) at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). She announced that her administration will prioritize key areas including climate change adaptation, energy transition, water and soil resource management, and integrated risk management over the next four years.

Prado Pano highlighted the strategic role of Earth sciences in addressing Mexico's significant challenges. She noted the country's specific vulnerabilities, such as aquifer overexploitation, soil degradation, and increasing frequency of extreme natural phenomena. "In Mexico, these issues acquire particular relevance given the overexploitation of aquifers, high levels of soil degradation, vulnerability to increasingly frequent natural phenomena, and the number of people living in risky situations," she stated.

She emphasized Mexico's extraordinary volcanic, tectonic, and geological diversity, calling the country a natural laboratory for frontier research and generating cutting-edge scientific knowledge in Earth sciences. A central objective of her tenure will be to strengthen internal academic community efforts to define new research priorities and enhance the institute's contributions to both the university and the nation.

To achieve this, Prado Pano plans a review of the research lines within the institute's four departments, Environmental and Soil Sciences, Surface Earth Dynamics, Paleontology, and Lithospheric Processes, as well as the Northwest Regional Station (ERNO). The goal is to adapt these lines to current Earth science needs and identify new study fields. She also intends to promote interdisciplinary projects that integrate knowledge, methodologies, and technological resources to tackle complex problems from scientific, social, and environmental perspectives, fostering teamwork to better explain major issues.