RESEARCH TEAM
Driven by a shared passion for sustainabiliy, our team leverages diverse expertise in life and social sciences to tackle complex environmental challenges with innovative solutions.
Irene Pérez Ibarra
Principal Investigator
Deeply committed to sustainability and with an extensive background in social-ecological systems (SES), her expertise encompasses natural resource governance, resilience, and human-environment interactions
Associate Professor at the Department of Agricultural Sciences and the Environment, University of Zaragoza (Spain), and Co-Principal Investigator of the Social-Ecological Systems Research Group at the Agrifood Institute of Aragon (IA2). With a background in ecology and biology, she specializes in the interdisciplinary field of social-ecological research, focusing on the governance and resilience of small-scale agricultural systems in the face of global change. Her research blends concepts and tools from life sciences to study biodiversity with the theories and methods of common-pool resources and resilience science, aiming to quantify the diversity and evolution of rules and norms in small-scale agricultural systems worldwide. Before joining the University of Zaragoza, Irene held research positions at the University of Murcia and Miguel Hernández University (Spain, 2007-09), the Center for the Study of Institutional Diversity at Arizona State University (USA, 2010-14), and the School of Social Work at Columbia University in New York City (USA, 2016-2019). She also teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in economics, sociology, and agricultural policy.CORE RESEARCH TEAM
Alicia Tenza Peral
Scientific Coordinator
Postdoctoral researcher at the University of Zaragoza. Environmental social scientist interested in the dynamics of social-ecological systems, focusing on resilience and adaptation to environmental and socioeconomic changes at higher scales for sustainable long-term dynamics.
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Laura X. Estévez Moreno
Data collection coordinator
Postdoctoral researcher at the University of Zaragoza, investigating the role of agriculture in rural livelihoods, sustainable agricultural practices from farm to table, human-animal relationships, and farm animal welfare.
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Ismael Lare David
PhD candidate
Holds a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science and a master’s in Integrated Water Management. His research focuses on quantifying institutional diversity in agricultural systems by means of institutional grammar and the typology and taxonomy of rules.
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Diego Arahuetes de la Iglesia
PhD candidate
Holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a master's in Anthropology and in Human Rights and Development. His research focuses on the structure of formal and informal institutions in common-pool resource systems.
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Blanca Vidao Teruel
PhD researcher
Predoctoral researcher in Sociology at the University of Zaragoza investigating mountain tourism, focusing on social and cultural aspects of the communities in rural areas. Holds a bachelor’s degree in History of Art, master’s in Tourism, Leisure and Territorial Development and master’s in Education. Her professional and academic career has been developed between France and Spain.More info
Francisco Javier Lacosta García
PhD candidate
Holds a bachelor's degree in Environmental Sciences and a master's in Spatial Planning and Environment. His research focuses on the spatial distribution of institutional diversity and nature's contributions to people.
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Carlota García Díaz
Research assistant
Holds a bachelor's degree in Environmental Sciences and a master's in Science, Technology and Environmental Management. Her research focuses on the analysis of risks and vulnerabilities associated with the effects of climate change.More info
Ana Olaizola Tolosana
Senior Staff Associate
Professor at the University of Zaragoza, specializing in the evolution and sustainability of extensive livestock systems. She supports data collection and interpetation of findings from case studies in Spain, particularly in the context of sustainable agricultural practices.
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Juan José Barriuso Vargas
Senior Staff
Associate Professor at the University of Zaragoza, focusing on agronomy and traditional agricultural systems. He supports data collection and interpetation of findings from case studies in Spain.
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Arezoo Mirzaei
External Collaborator
Postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Food Policy at Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg in Germany. Her interdisciplinary research focuses on the governance of natural resources, particularly water, from a socio-economic institutional perspective. She examines the formal and informal rules, norms, and strategies that shape the use and management of these critical resources.More info
Ignacio Pastore Benaim
Former collaborator
Former collaborator with a strong technical background in programming and data science, he contributed to RESILIENT RULES by adapting an online tool to assist in coding project data using the Institutional Grammar framework (see IG-Parser-Production in the publication link). In addition to his technical expertise, he holds a Master’s degree in Ecological Agriculture, which provides him with a solid foundation in agroecological systems and their sustainable management
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Andrea Martín Suárez
Former collaborator
Veterinarian and “One Health” master’s graduate from the University of Zaragoza. Andrea researches resilience and institutions in agriculture, focusing on subjective resilience to climate change, and institutional diversity in agricultural systems. She supports the project from its onset, focusing on coding institutions and disseminating findings
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Rocío de la Torre Cejías
Former Project Manager
PhD in Ecology, specializing in ecosystem restoration, with a broad career spanning environmental science, education and consultancy. She oversaw administrative and economic processes, focusing on personnel management and ensuring smooth operations throughout the project phases.
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GLOBAL FIELD RESEARCH TEAM
This team comprises researchers with extensive experience in social or social-ecological research and prior knowledge of the social organization of their study sites. They actively engage with key stakeholders to deliver insights that contribute ot our global undersanding of institutional diversity and resilience.
Ahmad Hamidov
Uzbekistan
Akouegnon Ferdinand Ayimasse
Benin
Alessandro Pagano
Italy
Amine Saidani
Algeria
Andiswa Finca
South Africa
Anushiya Shrestha
Nepal
Augustine Perrin
France
Aymen Frija
Tunisia
Beatriz Lima Ribeiro
Brazil
Bernardo Bartolomé Paz Betancourt
Bolivia
Binganidzo Muchara
South Africa
Blessing Akpan
Nigeria
Bruno Bonté
France
Carlos Bopp Montero
Chile
Christian Schleyer
Germany
Collins Izuchukwu Igboji
Nigeria
David Diaconu
Romania
Demetrio do Amaral de Carvalho
Timor-Leste
Edmon Totin
Benin
Edward Ellis
Mexico
Ellanie R. Cabrera
Philippines
Emmanuel Galindo Escamilla
Mexico
Enoch Mobisa Ontiri
Kenia
Felipe Bravo Peña
Chile
Frank Yonghong Li
China
Giacomo Pagot
Italy
Gimbage Ernest Mbeyale
Tanzania
Guangsi Lin
China
Hassen Abdelhafidh
Tunisia
Igshaan Samuels
South Africa
Isabel Guerrero Ochoa
Peru
Johana Herrera
Colombia
Jonathan Bill Doe
Ghana
Jun He
China
K J Joy
India
Kelvin Mark Mtei
Tanzania
Lana Slavuj Borčić
Croatia
Lapologang Magole
Botswana
Luz Ángela Rodríguez
Colombia
Mabrouk Laâbar
Tunisia
Mai Nusir
Jordania
Manoel Auffray
France
María Eugenia Amorós
Uruguay
Marin Cvitanović
Croatia
Michael Cox
Dominican Republic
Michael Schoon
USA
Oginot Germier Manasoa
Madagascar
Oscar Miranda Rodríguez
México
Paola Gatto
Italy
Raffaele Giordano
Italy
Rike Stotten
Austria
Sabina Vlad
Romania
Sebastián Restrepo Calle
Colombia
Tejendra Paratap Gautam
India
Thea Xenia Wiesli
Austria
Tungalag Ulambayar
Mongolia
Valerien O Pede
Philipines
Virginia Rosa Coletta
Italy
Wenxiu Chi
China
Witness Kozanayi
Zimbabwe
Xiangyu Jia
China
Yingjun Qi
China
Zarina Aranda
Paraguay
SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY BOARD
Crucial in addressing the challenge of applying life sciences methodologies to quantify global patterns of institutional diversity, this board comprises five eminent international experts. It provides a platform for rigorous discussion on both methodological approaches and scientific results, ensuring that the tools developed can be extensively validated and applied beyond this study.
Andrés Baselga
Associate Professor at University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain. He is a quantitative ecologist with a research focus on the ecological process that organizes biodiversity. His research is framed within the disciplines of community ecology and biogeography.
Personal website
Marco A. Janssen
Director
Director of the Center for Behavior, Institutions and the Environment and Professor at the School of Sustainability, Arizona State. He is an internationally recognized expert on the governance and resilience of social-ecological systems.Personal website
Ruth Mace
Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology at University College London, UK.
Personal website
Tine de Moor
Professor of Social Enterprise and Institutions for Collective Action at the department of Business-Society Management at the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands. She is an international expert on the longterm historical evolution of rural commons.Personal website
Saba Siddiki
Professor of Public Administration and International Affairs Department at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University, USA. Her research focuses on policy design, collaborative policy making, and regulatory implementation and compliance. She is the Co-director of the Institutional Grammar Research Initiative (IGRI).
Personal website
ETHICAL PRINCIPLES
At Resilient Rules, we recognize that research involving human participants must be conducted with utmost respect and care. Our commitment to these values is embedded in every aspect of our work, ensuring that all research activities not only comply with legal requirements but also adhere to high ethical standards.
Our research is guided by key principles that ensure
integrity and respect throughout the scientific process:
Honesty
We advocate for transparency and fairness in all research phases, from development through to communication.
Respect
We honor our colleagues, research participants, society, ecosystems, and cultural heritage, ensuring our work fosters a positive impact on all.
Accountability
We take full responsibility for our research, from conception to publication, including its management, societal impacts, and the mentoring of future researches.EXTERNAL ETHICS BOARD
Resilient Rules has established an Ethics Research Board, which plays a crucial role in maintaining the ethical integrity of our research. The board reviews all project activities to ensure they comply with the highest ethical standards, thereby protecting researchers, research participants and their communities.
Lydia Feito Grande
PhD
Associate Professor and Director of the group Research in Bioethic, deliberation and Applied Ethic (BDEA) at Complutense University of Madrid.
Personal website
Ricard Martínez Martínez
PhD
Associate Professor at Valencia University, Spain and Director of the Cátedra de Privacidad y Transformación Digital Microsoft-UV. He is the Data Protection Delegate of many Universities in Spain.Personal website
Manuel López Baroni
PhD
Associate Professor at University Pablo Olavide, Spain, member of the Observatory of Bioethic and Law, and Co-director of the Master in Bioethics and Law at University of Barcelona.
Personal website
Resilient Rules has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon Europe programme (ERC Consolidator Grant No 101044225 )
