Hi, I'm Julio.

I help teams understand their climate risks and advance their progress towards their sustainability goals by using statistical and machine learning methods combined with satellite imagery and climate data. Currently, I am an Applied Scientist at Descartes Labs based in New York City. I have also worked as a Postdoctoral Scholar in the Department of Earth System Science at Stanford University and as a Consultant in the Disaster Risk Management and Urban Development Unit at The World Bank. 

I hold a PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a certificate in Environmental Policy from Princeton University, as well as a BS in Applied Mathematics from Columbia University. My academic research focuses on the causes and impacts of droughts under current and future climates, and my research findings have been featured in media outlets including National Geographic, Scientific American, and Bloomberg Environment.

I enjoy traveling and learning about other cultures through their food, art, and music. In the upcoming years, one of my goals is to learn more languages to be able to connect better with others when I travel abroad. I also like to run in my spare time and, in the winter, ice skate and ski. I am originally from Mexico City, Mexico -- a warm, lively, and colorful city.
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You can contact me at: jherrera at alumni dot princeton dot edu

The header image displays a fraction of Lake Kariba and Zimbabwe as seen by NASA's Landsat 8 satellite on November 25, 2018. Lake Kariba is an important transboundary lake between Zambia and Zimbabwe, and a key source of water and hydropower for the region. Southern Africa has recently experienced a prolonged drought that has caused the Lake's levels to decline, leading to a range of cascading impacts including more frequent blackouts. Source: NASA Earth Observatory.