Marcela Suarez

Marcela Suarez is an Assistant Teaching Professor of Spatial Data Science in the Department of Geography at The Pennsylvania State University, affiliated with the John A. Dutton e-Education Institute. She teaches courses on cartography, GIS, and spatial data analysis in online geospatial programs. Her research focuses on integrating geographic information science, cartography, and emergency management to analyze user-generated content and volunteered geographic information for decision-making in disaster response. Suarez earned her Ph.D. in Geography from the University of California, Santa Barbara (2020), an M.Sc. in Disaster Risk Management and Emergency Response from the University of Costa Rica (2011), and a B.Eng. in Cadastral Engineering and Geodesy from Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas, Colombia (2005).

Prior roles include Research Specialist at UCSB’s Center for Spatial Studies and consultancy for the UNDP’s Colombian Climate Adaptation Project. She has led outreach initiatives like the GeoClub Colombia, empowering high school students through geography education. Her work emphasizes geovisualization, spatial clustering, and data fusion techniques to enhance emergency management and social-environmental analysis.

Research highlights include leveraging social media data for disaster response and spatial vulnerability assessments in urban and environmental contexts. Her contributions bridge academic research with practical applications in risk mitigation and community resilience.