Garcia-Ramon Maria-Dolores

Maria-Dolores Garcia-Ramon is a Full Professor of Geography at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), where she held academic leadership roles including Chair of the Department of Geography (1977–78, 1995–97) and Chair of the Doctoral Program in Human Geography (1986–94). She has been a visiting scholar at institutions such as the University of Arizona, Cornell University, and the London School of Economics. Her research focuses on rural geography, gender studies, and colonialism, with a particular emphasis on gendered spatial practices and women’s narratives in colonial contexts.

Education: PhD in Geography and History (1975, University of Barcelona), MA in Geography (1970, UC Berkeley), BA in Philosophy and Letters (1966, University of Barcelona).

Research Interests: Garcia-Ramon pioneered gender studies in Spanish geography, analyzing women’s roles in agriculture, urban public spaces, and colonial travel narratives. Her work critiques colonial discourses and explores how gender shapes spatial experiences. Key themes include the invisibility of women’s labor in rural economies, postcolonial geographies, and feminist methodologies in geographical research.

Publications: Over 90 peer-reviewed articles and 12 authored/edited books, including Mujer y agricultura en España (1994) and Geografía Rural (1992). Recent articles address urban planning’s gendered impacts and colonial travel narratives.

Awards: Recipient of the Jan Monk Award (2008), Premi Narcís Monturiol (2003), and membership in prestigious academies like Academia Europaea. She has led 31 funded research projects on gender, rural development, and colonial geographies.

Advising & Grants: Supervised 19 PhD theses and secured grants from the European Commission, Spanish Ministry of Science, and Catalan Government. Her work on gendered labor and urban spaces has influenced policy debates on work-life balance and inclusive urban design.

Labs/Teams: Active in the UAB’s Gender and Geography Research Group, contributing to international networks like the Association of American Geographers and editorial boards of journals such as Gender, Place & Culture.