The student from the Catholic University of Chile, Eduardo Pizarro, was selected by the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO) to carry out his research at the National Museum of Natural Sciences (MNCN) in Madrid.
February 2, 2023, Santiago. – The IAATO Antarctic Fellowship 2022, from the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators, was awarded to the student of the Catholic University of Chile and master’s researcher of the Millennium Institute Biodiversity Institute of Antarctic and Subantarctic Ecosystems (BASE), Eduardo Pizarro. The scholarship includes a three-month internship at the National Museum of Natural Sciences (MNCN), Spain, to continue developing his research on Antarctic penguins.
The objective of the researcher at the Molecular Biodiversity Laboratory is to investigate the changes in distribution and abundance of Antarctic penguins affected by global change, through the study of different ecological niche modeling approaches. “This scholarship allows us to contribute to the investigation of Antarctic ecosystems and their response to global change, which is one of the objectives set by the BASE Millennium Institute,” he said.
“I am very happy to receive the support of IAATO, this scholarship is a recognition of the excellent work that we are doing in the Laboratory of Molecular Biodiversity and in the BASE Millennium Institute for the investigation of Antarctic ecosystems. This opportunity means growth in my career as a young researcher, by giving me the opportunity to carry out the research project that I developed with the guidance of Dr. Juliana A. Vianna”, expressed the UC student.
Eduardo Pizarro started his project under the tutelage of the expert in biological conservation and Molecular ecology, Dr. Juliana A. Vianna, principal investigator of the Molecular Biodiversity Laboratory and the BASE Millennium Institute. During his internship, he will have the guidance of Dr. Pedro Aragón, senior researcher at the MNCN, and Dr. Luis Pertierra, researcher at the University of Pretoria in South Africa.
More information about the IAATO Antarctic Fellowship here.
By: Constanza Barrientos
