Daniela Ducci

Daniela Ducci is a Full Professor in the Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering (DICEA) at the University of Naples Federico II, Italy, and serves as Chair of the International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH) Italian National Chapter, growing its membership from 73 to nearly 200 since 2011.

Her educational background:

• Master's degree in Geology from University of Naples (1982) with thesis on Landslide susceptibility and Hydrogeology
• Specialized hydrogeology studies at UPC Barcelona (1982) under Spanish government grant
• Postgraduate modeling research at UPC (1985) advised by J. Carrera and E. Custodio

Her research pioneers aquifer vulnerability assessment using GIS and 3D hydrostratigraphic modeling, climate change impacts on Southern Italian groundwater (noting 30% recharge decline), and hydrogeochemical characterization including Natural Background Levels estimation via Indicator kriging. She champions "socio-hydrogeology" for community-centered groundwater conservation.

She leads research projects funded by the University, Italian Ministry of Education, and CNR, while organizing IAH Italy's biennial FLOWPATH meetings and training courses to support early-career hydrogeologists through low-cost student participation and the Zuppi PhD thesis award.