International Hydrological Programme

    María Concepción Donoso

    María Concepción Donoso, Panamanian, is UNESCO's Regional Hydrologist for Latin America and the Caribbean since May 2003. She has a B.Sc. and a M.Sc. in Civil Engineering from the People's Friendship University (Moscow, Russia) and a M.Sc. in Ocean Engineering from University of Miami (Miami, Fl., USA). Mrs. Donoso has pursued doctoral (Ph.D.) studies in Physical Oceanography at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science of the University of Miami.


    Ms Donoso's research and professional interests are in integrated water resources management, air-sea-land interaction processes, and in climate change and variability impacts on the natural environment (with main interest in water resources) and society. She has ample experience in research and academia. She was Professor of Water Sciences at the National University of Panama (1979-1980), Associate Researcher at the Technological University, Panama (1980-1981), Director of the Center for Hydraulic and Hydro-technical Research of the Technological University of Panama (1981-1983, 1985-1989), and Invited Professor of Ocean Sciences at the Naval Academy of Colombia (1989, 1990 and 1992).


    Ms Donoso's previous employment was as Director of the Water Centre for the Humid Tropics of Latin America and the Caribbean (CATHALAC), a centre under the auspices of UNESCO, with headquarters in the Republic of Panama. Throughout her professional career, Ms Donoso has acted as director of various projects and studies on water sciences. Similarly, she has served as Technical Adviser to national and regional organizations, and to private engineering consulting firms. Most recently, she served as the Coordinator of the Regional Consultation of the Caribbean and Central America Vision on Water, Life and the Environment for the 21st Century (1999 - 2000), and as a member of the Central America Technical Advisory Committee of the Global Water Partnership (2000 - 2003). Furthermore, Ms Donoso was a member of the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) Overall Performance Study International Team of Experts (2001).


    Presently, she is a Member of the Inter-American Water Resources Network (IWRN) Executive Council, a Fellow of the International Water Resources Association (IWRA), and serves at the World Water Council (WWC) Board of Directors. Ms Donoso is an active member of various professional associations, namely the Caribbean Studies Association (CSA), the American Water Resources Association (AWRA), the American Geophysical Union (AGU), the Oceanography Society (TOS), and the International Association of Scientific Hydrology (IAHS). Ms Donoso has been a lecturer at scientific and professional conferences and has numerous publications. She is fluent in Spanish, English, French and Russian.