Personal profile
Research interests
Soil and water conservation
Environmental Engineering
Biochar production and technology
Sustainable production in agriculture
Digital agriculture
Remote sensing
Soil erosion and sediment transport
Soil physics and soil mechanics
Personal profile
Karolina Villagra-Mendoza received the B.S. degree in agricultural engineering from the Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica (ITCR), Cartago, Costa Rica, in 1999, the M.Sc. degree in environmental engineering, and the Ph.D. degree in engineering, both from the Technische Universität Hamburg (TUHH), Hamburg, Germany, in 2006 and 2019, respectively. From 2006 to 2011, she was with the Institute of River and Coastal Engineering, TUHH. Since 2012, she has been an Associate Professor with the Agricultural Engineering Department, ITCR. Her current research interests include soil and water conservation, hydrological processes, environmental protection, soil erosion control, biochar application and production
Languages
English, German, Spanish
Education/Academic qualification
PhD, Dr.-Ing. Dissertation: Effect of Biochar Amended Soils on Infiltration Processes, Hamburg University of Technology
Award Date: 21 Oct 2019
Master, M.Sc. Environmental Engineering, Hamburg University of Technology
Award Date: 31 Oct 2006
Bachelor, Agricultural Engineering, Costa Rica Institute of Technology
Award Date: 30 Jun 1999
Keywords
- S Agriculture (General)
- biochar
- remote sensing
- soil erosion
- circular economy
- hydrology
- TD Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering
- water quality
- soil quality
- green infraestructure
- climate change
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
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SDG 2 Zero Hunger -
SDG 6 Clean Water and Sanitation -
SDG 7 Affordable and Clean Energy -
SDG 13 Climate Action -
SDG 15 Life on Land
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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ACTI-CHAR: Chemical and biological functionalization of carbons derived from Costa Rican agroforestry production to increase their added value as soil amendment and for the protection of water resources.
Masís Meléndez, F. (Coordinating Researcher (may be from TEC or another entity)), Caballero Chavarría, A. (Institutional academic collaborator), Quesada González, A. (Institutional academic collaborator) & Villagra Mendoza, K. (Institutional academic collaborator)
1/01/26 → 31/12/27
Project: Research Projects Internally funded › Basic and applied research
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Hacia una Economía Circular: Gestión sostenible de envases vacíos de plaguicidas de los agricultores del Cantón de Oreamuno, Cartago
Abarca Guerrero, L. (Institutional academic coordinator), Villagra Mendoza, K. (Institutional academic collaborator) & Picado Valverde, S. (Institutional academic collaborator)
1/01/26 → 31/12/27
Project: Internally funded extension projects › Participatory and collaborative action
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Esoil : ECO-SUELO: Evaluación y Mitigación de la Compactación del Suelo en Sistemas Agrícolas de Costa Rica mediante Tecnologías de Precisión Manejo Sostenible
Villagra Mendoza, K. (Coordinating Researcher (may be from TEC or another entity)), Soto Monge, A. A. (Institutional academic collaborator) & Horn, R. (External collaborating researcher )
1/01/26 → 31/12/29
Project: Research Projects Internally funded › Basic and applied research
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Belen : ESBN-Belén: Evaluación del impacto hidrológico e hidrodinámico de la implementación de soluciones basadas en la naturaleza en la cuenca del río Bermúdez, con modelos calibrados y escenarios de cambio climático
Villagra Mendoza, K. (Coordinating Researcher (may be from TEC or another entity)), Watson Hernández, F. (Institutional academic coordinator) & Monge Vargas, K. (Institutional academic collaborator)
1/01/26 → 31/12/27
Project: Research Projects Internally funded › Basic and applied research
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M-Hidrica: Modelación de la erosión hídrica y transporte de sedimentos a nivel de laboratorio”
Villagra Mendoza, K. (Institutional academic coordinator)
1/01/25 → 31/12/26
Project: Research Projects Internally funded › Others
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Evaluación del comportamiento del índice de humedad y vegetación en un cultivo de café por medio de sensores remotos utilizando Vehículos Aéreos no Tripulados
Mora-Pérez, G., Villagra-Mendoza, K. & Arriola-Valverde, S., 8 Apr 2025, In: Revista Tecnología en Marcha. 38, 2, p. 63-76 14 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Impact of Biochar and Microorganisms on Coffee Seedlings Resilience to Water Stress and Diseases
Alvarado-Picado, E., Villagra-Mendoza, K., Pérez, J. & Masís-Meléndez, F., 31 Jan 2025, In: Terra Latinoamericana. 43, e2055.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Predictive regression model for crop biomass in clayey soil amended with bamboo biochar
Villagra-Mendoza, K., Joségómez-Astorga, M. & Masís-Meléndez, F., 31 Mar 2025, In: Agricultural Engineering International: CIGR Journal. 27, 1, p. 24-34 11 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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A Comparative Study of Deep Learning Frameworks Applied to Coffee Plant Detection from Close-Range UAS-RGB Imagery in Costa Rica
Arriola-Valverde, S., Rimolo-Donadio, R., Villagra-Mendoza, K., Chacón-Rodriguez, A., García-Ramirez, R. & Somarriba-Chavez, E., Dec 2024, In: Remote Sensing. 16, 24, 4617.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access1 Scopus citations -
Calibration of Low-Cost Moisture Sensors in a Biochar-Amended Sandy Loam Soil with Different Salinity Levels
Gómez-Astorga, M. J., Villagra-Mendoza, K., Masís-Meléndez, F., Ruíz-Barquero, A. & Rimolo-Donadio, R., Sep 2024, In: Sensors (Switzerland). 24, 18, 5958.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access8 Scopus citations