Research Interests

• Ecosystem based Adaptation
• Urban-rural linkages
• Vulnerability & Risk Assessment

Education

• M.Sc. Geography of Environmental Risks and Human Security, University of Bonn & United Nations University – Institute of Environment and Human Security
• B.A. Geography / Environmental Studies, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Department of Geography

Appointments

• 2017-2017 Masters Research Fellow for the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF)

Biographical Statement

Manuel joined UNU-EHS in February 2020 as a Research Associate supporting the VALE project. This project aims develop and implement an innovative method to derive earth observation-based information products for selected indicators of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and validate them based on an existing database on flood loss and damage in Ecuador.

Prior to joining UNU-EHS, Manuel worked at the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ), where he supported a project working with donors on land governance and agricultural rural development. Manuel served as a Peace Corps Volunteer for two years in Ecuador, focusing on natural resource conservation and sustainable community income generation.

Manuel holds an MSc in Geography of Environmental Risks and Human Security from the UNU-EHS and the University of Bonn. He wrote his Masters thesis on the political ecology of coffee in Pichanaki, Peru, centering on State agroforestry concessions on smallholder livelihood resilience.