Santos, Fabián
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Santos, Fabián
Main Affiliation
Quito
Email
ernestosantos@uti.edu.ec
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Scopus Author ID
57193085558

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Strengthening the Adoption of Copernicus Services in Latin America: Capacity Building Experiences in Ecuador and Bolivia

2025 , Santos, Fabián , Luisa Di Lucchio , Manuel Múgica Barrera

The Copernicus program, an initiative by the European Union, offers open-access Earth observation data and high-level products through its services. However, these services are less well known in Latin America, underscoring the need to strengthen capacity-building efforts. In this context, this research examines the design and implementation of training workshops in Ecuador and panel discussions in Bolivia, focusing on the role of Copernicus Services in addressing regional challenges related to Environmental, Food Security, Climate Change, Security, and Risk Management through geospatial technologies. By tailoring training sessions in Ecuador to enhance stakeholders’ capabilities and conducting panel discussions in Bolivia to promote these services among public entities, this research highlights the successes and challenges of these initiatives. We emphasize the importance of flexible event design, alignment with local contexts, and the integration of interactive methodologies to enhance stakeholder engagement and learning outcomes. Additionally, differences and similarities between the event formats are discussed in terms of purposes and objectives, audience engagement, content delivery, attendance, and post-event outcomes. Finally, we outline the convergences and divergences in strategic priorities for future Copernicus Services training initiatives in both countries.

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The socioeconomic drivers of invasive plant cover in rural Galapagos

2025 , Nicole Acosta-Vásconez , Heinke Jäger , Uwe A. Schneider , Santos, Fabián , Khondokar H. Kabir , Kerstin Jantke

The unique biodiversity of the Galapagos Islands faces a significant threat from invasive plants, particularly in the highlands. Invasive plant occurrence is expected to shift in response to changing rural socioeconomic factors, further exacerbating the threat to native ecosystems. So far, limited research has integrated socioeconomic factors as drivers of invasive plant cover changes across the rural landscape. Our study employed stakeholder surveys, plant cover models, and spatial and statistical analyses to identify socioeconomic factors impacting the cover of commonly used or controlled invasive plant species (guava, Cuban cedar, blackberry) in the rural areas of Santa Cruz and San Cristobal Islands. Relevant socioeconomic factors were selected through a ranked predictor analysis in species cover models using random forest algorithms. Both biophysical and socioeconomic predictors were included to increase model comprehensiveness. We found that biophysical factors—such as climate, soil properties, and topography—were strong predictors of Cuban cedar cover. In contrast, socioeconomic factors, soil properties, and climate were better predictors of guava. Statistical analyses revealed that landowners’ primary income source and land use had a significant influence on guava cover. Farms dependent on agriculture had lower guava cover, while those focusing on tourism had the highest. The quality of available data limited results for blackberry. Our study highlights relevant factors that should be considered for invasive plant management in rural Galapagos. It quantifies the effect of key socioeconomic variables on guava cover on Santa Cruz and San Cristobal Islands

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Leveraging Geographic Research, Web Applications and Surveys in the Construction of Educational Strategies in Ecuador

2024 , Santos, Fabián , Fernanda Suárez , Joaquín Gairín

Communicating geographic research and contributing to the construction of regional educational strategies represent little-explored challenges. This paper takes a geographic research study that discusses territorial imbalances in access to higher education in Ecuador as an example. It describes a methodology based on developing a web application software (WAS) named “Brechas Educativas”. This software aims to disseminate research results and encourages users to reflect on their territories and the access to higher education for their student populations. Subsequently, we collected perceptions about the WAS, factors affecting academic performance and the assimilation of experiences post-COVID-19 pandemic through a survey. To achieve this, virtual workshops were conducted with 95 educational institutions (EIs) across Ecuador, complemented by email correspondence with a group of 3284 EIs. Our results enabled us to understand the good practices for developing WAS for scientific dissemination, the achievements and pitfalls in collecting opinions from the EIs and to draft focused strategies for educational decision-making in this area, informed by both app traffic and survey responses.

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