Rocio Vargas

View Rocio's 2020 Global Change Scholars Program Showcase video.

Rocío is a Geologist with a Master of Sciences from Universidad de Chile. She received the CODELCO Academic Excellence Scholarship for her undergraduate studies and the CONICYT Scholarship for her Master program. During her studies, Rocío was a teaching assistant in mineralogy and geochemistry related courses and spent two internships in the mineral resources sector in her country, Chile. Following this, Rocío worked for the Reflex Company as a Geochemist for their expansion in South America - mainly in Chile and Peru. Additionally, she has worked as a Project Geologist at Exploraciones Mineras Andinas (CODELCO subsidiary) and NuevaUnion. In 2018, Rocío was awarded The University of Queensland’s Research Training Scholarship to join the W.H. Bryan Mining & Geology Research Centre at the Sustainable Minerals Institute. In her PhD research, she aims to apply her experience to identify and quantify key mineralogical and geochemical features of orebodies, which may be useful in the mineral processing and mine planning. She aims to have a broader concept of mining and to be conscious about the effects that it has through the whole cycle, from early exploration to mine closure. She is interested in applying technologies to mitigate negative impacts and encourage positive innovations, conducted by sustainable development principles and she considers herself able to become a research leader in fostering appropriate changes from within the resources sector.