María holds a Doctorate "Cum Laude" in Architecture from the International University of Catalonia + Elisava (2021), a Master's degree in Design from the Politecnico di Milano (2012), a degree in Architecture from the University of Santiago de Chile (2006), and is also an Ergonomist certified by the same institution. Currently, she works as a researcher in the Decoding Well-Being research line at Elisava Research, co-director of the Master's program in Design for One Health, and serves as a faculty member at the same institution. Simultaneously, she practices as an architect at maLeon Arquitectura, Design, and Research, and collaborates as an architect at TEMA Studio. Since 2006, she has been working as an independent architect, collaborating with various studios in Chile, Italy, and Spain. Her research focuses on the psychological, cognitive, and biological foundations of architectural experience, with the goal of enhancing overall human well-being through the encoding and parameterization of human-environment relationships. She approaches design with evidence-based methods, a systemic perspective, ergonomics, and principles of neuroarchitecture.

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