Lara DOMINGUEZ is a professor at the Ecology Institute, A.C. She specializes in ecology and management of coastal lagoons and estuaries, mangroves and seagrasses ecosystems, and nekton community. She has participated in projects supporting protected coastal areas such as Laguna de Terminos in the southern part of the state and in the Region de los Petenes. Both regions are ecological protected areas for wild fauna and flora. In addition, she is working as a consultant and is currently preparing three books: 'Mangroves Ecosystems in Latin America: Structure, Function and Management'; 'Ecology of Coastal Zone: Select Topics'; and 'Economic Valuation of Mangroves Ecosystems'. She has published more than 45 articles. She has a bachelor's degree in biology and a master's in marine sciences. She is a Ph.D. in marine sciences, focusing on fisheries and biological oceanography.