The PiA Steering Committee is integrated by scientists and managers from government agencies, academia and the business community from eight countries across the spectrum of disciplines related to sedimentation processes.
Yogi Agrawal’s career began as an Oceanographer. His work covers deep and later shallow marine bottom and surface processes, and lately in rivers. He developed the original LISST instrument with US Navy funding while at WHOI. He commercialized these at Sequoia Scientific, which he founded with partner C. Pottsmith. He continues research, and development of technologies.
Elisa Armijos holds a doctoral degree in Hydrology, Climate and Environment (diploma in committee from the National Research Institute of Amazon, INPA-Brazil and Paul Sabatier University-France). As Senior Scientist Researcher of the Geophysical Institute of Peru (IGP), she is currently advancing research in hydrology and sediment transport at the Amazon Basin. She is part of the UNESCO Sustainable Water Management Group in Latin America and the Caribbean and collaborates with SO-Hybam French Program.
Prof. Buarque is a Civil Engineer with PhD in Water Resources and Environmental Sanitation (IPH/UFRGS - Brazil). He is currently Professor at Department of Environmental Engineering of the Federal University of Espírito Santo - UFES/Brazil and Coordinator of the Postgraduate Program in Environmental Engineering - PPGEA/UFES. His research covers Hydrology, Hydrological and Hydraulics Modelling, Sediment Modelling, Hydrological Processes, Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and Remote Sensing.
Raúl received his Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Washington (Seattle, USA). He is currently Assistant Professor in the Civil Engineering Department at Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María (Valparaíso, Chile). His research focuses on sediment transport and exchange processes in estuaries, river plumes and the coastal system.
Dr. Pedocchi received his PhD in 2009 from the University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, USA. He has been working in the Instituto de Mecanica de los Fluidos e Ingenieria Ambiental (IMFIA) at the School of Engineering of Universidad de la Republica, Uruguay. Most of his research is on Rio de la Plata dynamics. His current research includes: cohesive sediments, field sediment measurement and remote sensing, using both ground level and satellite imagery.
Prof. Perillo holds a MS in Geology (University of Buenos Aires) and a PhD in Oceanography (Old Dominion University). He is a Sr Superior Researcher (CONICET) at Instituto Argentino de Oceanografía (IADO) and Full Professor at Departamento de Geología, Universidad Nacional del Sur both in Bahia Blanca, Argentina. Research Interest: Dynamics of sediment transport in coastal & continental environments. Geomorphology, dynamics and physical-biological interactions in beaches, estuaries, coastal wetlands as well as in lakes.
John J. Ramirez-Avila is an Associate Professor at the Richard A. Rula School of Civil and Environmental Engineering in Mississippi State University. He is engaged in research designed to determine sediment and nutrient sources; to quantify upland erosion and in-stream processes at reach and watershed scales; and to test, validate and improve hydrology, watershed and channel evolution models. He also contributes in studies focused to develop, evaluate and implement BMPs, and management and restoration plans to reduce non-point pollution and improve health of surface waters.
M.Sc. in Earth Sciences and Ph.D. in Marine Sciences. Currently, Associate Professor and Chair of the Physics and Geosciences Department at Universidad del Norte (Colombia) and Guest Investigator at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) (EEUU). His research focuses on the analysis of fluvial, estuarine and coastal processes in tropical environments with an emphasis on the sediment transport/deposition processes.
Alejandro Souza has dedicated his career to the study of shelf-sea, estuarine and coastal processes. His main interest is in turbulence, mixing and transport processes; particularly in how baroclinic processes modify transport. He has increasing interest on the controls that physical processes have on primary productivity and marine ecology. In 2017 he joined the Marine Resources Department of CINVESTAV, Mexico; after 20 years in the NOC, UK.