Andrea Nóblega Carriquiry
R2 - Recognised Researcher
Nature-based Solutions
Urban Climate Resilience
Political Ecology
Hydrosocial Transformations
Environmental Justice
Social-Ecological-Technical Systems
A Political Ecology of Nature-based Solutions: empirical cases in Spain and Germany
COOLSCHOOLS
Andrea Nóblega Carriquiry is a senior lecturer and researcher at Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, specializing in urban resilience to climate change. She holds a PhD in Human Geography from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and is an architect (Hons.) with a double master’s degree in International Cooperation in Urban Development (Technische Universität Darmstadt) and International Cooperation: Sustainable Emergency Architecture (Universitat Internacional de Catalunya).
Her research activity focuses on the socio-ecological and political dimensions of Nature-Based Solutions (NbS) and their potential to foster more just and resilient urban and metropolitan strategies in the context of the escalating climate emergency. Grounded in an Urban Political Ecology and Environmental Justice perspective, she conceptualizes NbS not merely as technical or ecological interventions, but as socio-technical and political systems shaped by governance arrangements, power relations, and structural inequalities. She employs a mixed-methods approach that integrates both qualitative and quantitative analysis to explore community acceptance, stakeholder perceptions, and user expectations regarding Cultural Ecosystem Services (CES), among other factors. She recently contributed to the COOLSCHOOLS project, examining the transformative adaptation of NbS to tackle urban heat resilience, from a social equity perspective. Currently, she is investigating the transformation of the hydrosocial cycle of the Besòs River in response to the climate emergency through the HYDROSOCIALS project.
ARTICLES IN HIGH-IMPACT ACADEMIC JOURNALS – PEER REVIEWED:
Nóblega-Carriquiry, A., March, H., Sauri, D., Hack, J., 2025. Neighbour perspectives on Cultural Ecosystem Services from Blue-Green Infrastructures on the making: the bottom-up housing project of ecovillage Hannover (Germany). Ecosystem Services. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2025.101701
Nóblega-Carriquiry, A., March Corbella, H., Sauri Pujol, D., 2023. Stakeholder perceptions of the socio-ecological role of nature-based solutions in the Les Glòries Park, Barcelona. Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, 85, [127966]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2023.127966
Nóblega-Carriquiry, A., 2022. Contributions of Urban Political Ecology to sustainable drainage transitions. Documents d’ Analisi Geografica, 68(2), 363-391. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/dag.701
Nóblega-Carriquiry, A., March Corbella, H., Sauri Pujol, D., 2022. Community Acceptance of Nature-Based Solutions in the Delta of the Tordera River, Catalonia. Land, 11(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/land11040579
Nóblega-Carriquiry, A., Sauri Pujol, D., March Corbella, H., 2020. Community involvement in the implementation of Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDSs) in Bon Pastor, Barcelona. Sustainability, 12(2). https://doi.org/10.3390/su12020510
PUBLISHED MONOGRAPHS:
Nóblega-Carriquiry, A. (2024). A Political Ecology of Nature-based Solutions: empirical cases in Spain and Germany. PhD Thesis. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.2.21728.19204
Nóblega-Carriquiry, A., Pignata, A., 2015. La fragmentación en la ciudad contemporánea latinoamericana. Bachelor Thesis. Universidad ORT Uruguay.
HYDROSOCIALS: Tapping into the Future: Transforming Hydrosocial Cycles of the Llobregat and Besòs Rivers in the Face of Climate Emergency.
OPENEU: The learner-centred, inclusive, digital and green Open European University for the strengthening of the European Higher Education Area. ERASMUS-EDU-2024-EUR-UNIV-101177241.
COOLSCHOOLS Realizing potentials of nature-based climate shelters in school environments for urban transformation. ERA-NET Co-fund “Urban Tranformation Capacities” F-ENUTC-2021-0177. AEI: PCI2022-132958. Funding: 1.592.543€. 1/03/2022-28/02/2025.
Socio-ecological reshaping of European Cities and Metropolitan Areas. Project selected as part of the “Constructive Advanced Thinking” (CAT) 2020 Programme – Incubated in the “Network of European Institutes for Advanced Study” (NETIAS). Interdisciplinary program for young researchers starting their career. Consortium: Maria Manso (PI – University of Lisbon); Rieke Hansen (Hochschule Geisenheim University); Joana Guerrin (INRAE, France); Manuel Beißler (Leibniz University Hannover); Jochen Hack (ex PI – Leibniz Universität Hannover).
CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS:
Ruiz-Mallén, I., Colacios, R., March, H., Nóblega-Carriquiry, A., Ribera, R., Serrano, I., Sekulova, F. (2025). La naturalización de entornos escolares: una apuesta para mejorar los servicios ecosistémicos. XXIX Congreso de la Asociación Española de Geografía. Panel “Environmental Change”.
Nóblega Carriquiry, A. (2021). Nature Based Solutions or Green Infrastructures? The case of the Maresme region. En 5th International Conference on Public Policy (ICPP5). Panel 12: “Questioning the turn of water-related risk policies towards nature” (pp. 1-20).
Nóblega Carriquiry, A., Celaya Alvarez, A. (2021). Urban Resilience in post-Soviet built environment renewal: the case study of Yakutsk. En “DOCONF2021: Facing Post-Socialist Urban Heritage – Doctoral/postdoctoral conference in architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, and planning” (pp. 1-25).
CONTRIBUTIONS TO TECHNICAL REPORTS:
Cardoso, M.A., Brito, R.S., Pereira, C., David, L., Almeida, M.C., 2020. Resilience Assessment Framework (RAF), Description and implementation. Proyecto: Resilience to Cope with Climate Change in Urban Areas (Horizon 2020). Deliverable D6.4.
“From Sydney to Barcelona: Adaptation of good green infrastructure practices for a more resilient city.” Student: Xavier Font Sala. Faculty of Law and Political Sciences; Cities and Urbanism Master (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna); Course 2024-2025.
“Climate vulnerability in public spaces in Can’Oriac (Sabadell): An urban analysis of heat waves.” Student: Cèlia Navarrete Reyes. Faculty of Law and Political Sciences; Cities and Urbanism Master (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna); Course 2025-2026.
2024 – TO DATE:
Socio-environmental challenges and organizations (Master programme); Faculty of Economics and Business (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna).
Political Ecology and urban sustainability (Master programme); Faculty of Law and Political Sciences (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna).
Water resources and Planetary Health (Master programme); Faculty of Health Sciences (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna).
Ecological Economics (Graduate programme); Faculty of Economics and Business (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna).
Environmental Economics (Graduate Programme); Faculty of Economics and Business (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna).
Contemporary Environmental Challenges I (Graduate programme); Faculty of Economics and Business (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna).
Contemporary Environmental Challenges II (Graduate programme); Faculty of Economics and Business (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna).
Climate change and carbon footprint (Master programme); Faculty of Economics and Business (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna).
Governance and social resilience in tourist destinations (Master programme); Faculty of Economics and Business (Universitat Oberta de Cataluyna).
11/2024 – TO DATE:
The Political Ecology of urban water runoff (Master in Urban Resilience for Sustainability Transitions, Universitat Internacional de Catalunya).
The Political Ecology of Nature-based Solutions (Master in Urban Resilience for Sustainability Transitions, Universitat Internacional de Catalunya).
The Political Ecology of Urban Transformation (Master of International Cooperation Sustainable Emergency Architecture, Faculty of Architecture, Universitat Internacional de Catalunya).
Guided tours: Nature-based solutions in Barcelona; Urban climate shelters in Barcelona (Master in Urban Resilience for Sustainability Transitions and Master in Urban Resilience for Sustainability Transitions; Universitat Internacional de Catalunya).
09/2020 – 02/2022
Demographic Analysis (Department of Geography, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona).
Demography and contemporary societies (Department of Geography, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona).
Geography in East Asia (Faculty of Translation, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona).
08/2016 – 03/2017
Project 2 (Faculty of architecture; Universidad ORT)
Contracted Doctoral Lecturer Accreditation. Spanish National Agency for Quality Assessment and Accreditation (ANECA) (09/2025).
Extraordinary Doctorate Prize 2023-2024 for PhD thesis “A Political Ecology of Nature-based Solutions in urban and peri urban spaces. Empirical cases in Spain and Germany.” PhD programme from the Department of Geography, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (03/2025).
Doctoral Scholarship as university staff researcher FI 2020. Funded by the Generalitat de Catalunya (03/2020 – 06/2024).
Project winner of the Constructive Advanced Thinking Programme (CAT) 2020, issued by Network of European Institutes for Advanced Study (NETIAS). Project title: “Socio-ecological reshaping of European Cities and Metropolitan Areas” (12/2020 – 02/2023).
Erasmus+ trainee scholarship for research at Leibniz Universität Hannover. Financed by the European Commission (04/2023 – 07/2023).
Erasmus+ Scholarship of the Erasmus Mundus Master’s Program. Financed by the European Commission (09/2017 – 09/2019).
Diploma of Architecture with Honors. Faculty of Architecture. Universidad ORT, Uruguay (08/2015).
Graduation speech of the Faculty of Architecture. Universidad ORT, Uruguay (08/2015).