Dr. Roxanne Suzette LORILLA

Research scientist at the Luxembourg Centre for Socio-Environmental Systems (LCSES), University of Luxembourg

Roxanne Suzette Lorilla’s research focuses on assessing the interactions between ecosystems, human activities, and environmental change through spatial analysis and modelling. Her work integrates geospatial analysis and machine learning approaches to analyse ecosystem services and support evidence-based environmental decision-making.

Her early research explored ecosystem services across Mediterranean island landscapes. Through spatial modelling and landscape analysis, she examined how socio-ecological drivers influence the distribution of ecosystem services and identified spatial mismatches between ecosystem service supply and societal demand. This work contributed to improved approaches for incorporating ecosystem services into spatial planning and sustainable land management.

Building on this foundation, Roxanne’s research expanded toward the development of indicators and analytical frameworks for biodiversity monitoring and ecosystem service assessments. She has contributed to several European research projects investigating biodiversity conservation, climate change impacts, and sustainable land-use strategies across diverse ecosystems, including agricultural, urban, and island systems. Her work also integrates stakeholder engagement to co-develop policy-relevant indicators and tools that support decision-making.

Her current research further explores the integration of diverse quantitative and qualitative data sources to monitor ecosystem dynamics and assess the impacts of environmental change on biodiversity and ecosystem services. By combining spatial modelling with interdisciplinary collaboration, her work aims to strengthen the science-policy interface and support environmental governance.

Roxanne has been involved in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching as a teaching assistant in courses including Spatial Analysis, Thematic Cartography, and Geo-Information Systems and Remote Sensing. Her teaching combined lectures with hands-on exercises focusing on geospatial analysis, GIS applications, and ecosystem service mapping.

Roxanne has received research and mobility grants supporting international scientific collaboration and training. These include Short-Term Scientific Mission grants within the COST Action SMILES – Enhancing Small-Medium Islands resilience by securing the sustainability of ecosystem services, enabling research visits to institutions such as the University of Granada (Spain) and Meise Botanic Garden (Brussels).

Earlier in her career, she was awarded a doctoral scholarship by the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (HFRI) and the General Secretariat for Research and Technology, supporting her PhD research on ecosystem service mapping and assessment.

As a freelance researcher, she has contributed to multiple European research projects funded under programmes such as Horizon 2020, Horizon Europe, INTERREG, PRIMA, BiodivERsA, and COST.

After completing her doctoral studies in Geography at Harokopio University of Athens in 2020, Roxanne worked as a research associate at the National Observatory of Athens, where she contributed to projects on earth observation, climate change, and ecosystem services in agroecosystems.

Between 2023 and 2025, she was a postdoctoral researcher at the Harokopio University of Athens, working on projects addressing biodiversity conservation and ecosystem service maintenance, with a focus on integrating local stakeholder knowledge into environmental data modelling. During this period, she also served as an external expert for the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission, contributing to biodiversity data assessments.

Since February 2026, she has been a Research Scientist at the Luxembourg Centre for Socio-Environmental Systems (LCSES) at the University of Luxembourg.

Roxanne is actively involved in international scientific networks and research communities related to ecosystem services and biodiversity science. She serves as co-leader of the Working Group on Ecosystem Services of Small-Medium Islands within the COST Action SMILES and is a member of the lead team of the Thematic Working Group on Ecosystem Services Indicators (TWG3) of the Ecosystem Services Partnership (ESP).

In addition to serving as a reviewer for international scientific journals, she has also served as guest editor for special issues focusing on ecosystem services, machine learning applications, and sustainability research.

She also contributes to the organization and facilitation of scientific events, including thematic sessions and training activities at Ecosystem Services Partnership conferences and other international workshops, fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange within the ecosystem services research community.

Roxanne contributes to science-policy interfaces through collaborations with European and international organizations.

She worked as an external expert for the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, supporting biodiversity data assessments, and currently contributes to the implementation of policy/programmes such as the Second European Assessment on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (MAES2IPBES), focusing on marine and freshwater indicators.

She also contributed to the IPBES Nexus Assessment on biodiversity, water, food, and health, providing scientific evidence on the interactions between biodiversity and societal systems. Through these activities, she supports the translation of scientific knowledge into policy-relevant information and environmental monitoring frameworks.

Roxanne holds a PhD in Geography from Harokopio University of Athens (2020), where her doctoral research focused on mapping and assessing ecosystem services to support informed decision-making in landscape planning.

She also holds an MSc in Geoinformatics (2016) and a BSc in Environmental Technology (2014). Her academic training combines environmental sciences and geospatial analysis, applied to ecosystem services assessments.

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