Carmen Mireya Lapo Pauta is a research professor of the Department of Civil Engineering of the Private Technical University of Loja–UTPL, coordinator of professional practices of the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, and civil engineer, UTPL (1997); she holds a master's degree in hydraulic and environmental engineering from the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV)–Spain (2012), and a doctorate of hydraulic and environmental engineering from UPV–Spain (2019). She is also a technician and coordinator of sanitation works and distribution networks in public and private institutions. Since 2005, she has been a professor at UTPL. She works on topics such as: optimization algorithms for the design of distribution and irrigation networks, projects for linking with society, and teaching innovation projects. She is a member of: the College of Civil Engineers Loja, the Research Group "Innovation and Development for the Sustainability of the Urban and Rural Cycle (I+D Smart Water Network), the Thematic Research Network on Integrated Management of Water Resources (IWRM), and the Network of Sustainable Management of Water in the Agricultural Sector (MASASAP). She is also a recipient of the Tomás Moro Humanistic Award (2014)