Karina Mendoza Llontop

Karina Mendoza is a Doctoral Candidate in Transport and Mobility Studies at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid and a member of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Doctoral Network TRANSFORM. Her PhD research aims to conceptualize, operationalize, and evaluate (through virtual reality experiments) “transitional urban spaces” as city-level adaptation devices to the physical-digital hybrid paradigm.

She holds a Master´s degree in Integrated Urban Development and Design from the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar and a Bachelor´s degree in Architecture from the University of Lima.

Prior to joining the network, she worked as a research assistant at the Chair for Informatics in Architecture and Urbanism (InfAU) at Bauhaus-Universität Weimar on the INUMO project (Integrated Urban Mobility), where she developed and applied an analytical digital tool for masterplans in emerging cities in Ethiopia.

She also participated in placemaking-related related projects in Germany and has experience as an architect leading housing projects.

Within the network, she collaborates with academic and non-academic partners and undertakes secondments that strengthen the link between mobility and built-environment research, using immersive technologies to inform urban planning and design decisions. 

Her career aspirations focus on developing applied research for international organizations or consultancy environments, where evidence-based work informs sustainable mobility and public space projects. She aims to continue working the European context and eventually contribute as a consultant to urban development initiatives in Peru and across Latin America.