MESM 2025
Pronouns: she/her
Bio
Sofia Gutierrez graduated from Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile with a B.S. in Biological Science (2021). During her studies, she attended the University of Notre Dame Environmental Research Center where she gained fieldwork experience in a variety of ecology courses. Later on, her undergraduate research focused on identifying biological corridors for huemul deer, and on the population dynamics of humpback whales in Francisco Coloane Marine Park, Patagonia.
After graduating, Sofia interned at the Bottlenose Dolphin Research Institute (BDRI), in Spain. Here, she participated in different research activities, such as the collection of environmental and anthropogenic data as well as boat-based surveys of wild cetaceans and did photo identification analysis of bottlenose dolphins and baleen whales.
Her adventurous spirit brought her back to Chile in 2022 to work as a research technician on the monitoring of feral dogs at the Cape Horn International Center on Navarino Island. She also worked as a volunteer at Patagonia Azul Park with the Rewilding Argentina Foundation along with the Species and Conservation team.
Sofia’s passion for the conservation of the pristine ecosystems of Patagonia and her interest in addressing environmental social justice in Chile guided her to continue her studies at the Bren School. Here, she will be specializing in Conservation Planning and Coastal Resources Management. Sofia is interested in exploring the importance of protected areas on the resilience of climate and global change impacts in socio-ecological systems.