de la Torre-Escoto, María Elena

"I'm interested in subjects related to the right to the city, socio-environmental justice, and urban policy to encourage sustainable urbanism". Ever since she was a child, María Elena de la Torre Escoto was drawn towards urban dynamics and their problems. As time went by, her passion for the cities themselves increased, so she decided to specialize in the methodologies, processes, and designs that lead to habitat improvement, while safeguarding the characteristics of the ecosystems. With a master's degree in housing and urbanism and a Ph.D. in urbanism and territory ordering, she inclined towards the creation of territorial strategies. Her main areas of interest are design and management strategies that lead to harmonious relationships between human activities, as well as the processes of nature to keep its balance and the urban scale project that requires integral design solutions for connectivity, functionality, and quality public spaces. De la Torre Escoto enjoys constantly searching for solutions, aside from being in touch with people, their ecosystems and urban areas, in order to transform them into quality environments. Regarding challenges, she considers that being able to share her passion for the city to his students and helping them find their own path and problem-solving methods are some of the main ones. Another one would be to achieve that decision-makers implement innovative projects that solve urban problems and produce scientific knowledge after each experience.