Student Member Spotlight: Celina Farias

Written by: Kevin Corbley

Originally from Resistencia-Chaco, Argentina, Celina Farias is currently a PhD student in Earth Observation at Sapienza University in Rome. She completed her undergraduate studies in Applied Sciences at the National University of Cordoba in Argentina and went on to earn a graduate degree in Geology, also in Cordoba. Her current PhD research focuses on the use of satellite data and AI algorithms for water resource management, specifically related to risks posed by ground water extraction, ground subsidence and flooding risk. This research is funded by the European Space Agency (ESA) and Titan4, a private company. Celina joined GRSS in 2023 while attending an IEEE conference as an undergraduate student in Argentina. During her free time, Celina enjoys time outside, along with traveling and hiking. She also sings and makes music while playing her guitar.

Why did you decide to join GRSS?

I joined IEEE and GRSS in 2023, when I had the opportunity to participate in a special session organized by GRSS in an IEEE conference in Argentina. It was my first conference, and I was invited to join GRSS as an undergraduate student. At that very moment, I didn’t know much about it, but what I had for sure is that I wanted to develop myself in the field of remote sensing and geosciences. I wanted to explore what the community had to offer and to network with all these people, whom I admire.

In terms of your academic career right now – pursuing your PhD – how do you think GRSS membership will benefit you?

Let me speak about the past to speak about the future. GRSS already has provided me with very fruitful experiences that enhance not only my professional knowledge but also my personal soft skills. Academically, the different conferences, workshops, and webinars organized by GRSS expanded my knowledge on remote sensing and data processing, which are my main interests. They helped me to shape my research objectives in the PhD program and also broadened my horizons to see what can be done with these [remote sensing] tools. It keeps me updated on the new data and emerging technologies in the space sector. But also – since I’ve been actively participating as a volunteer in my country’s chapter – I have gained communication, problem-solving, decision-making, and even organizing skills, which are useful for both life and work. I also have the opportunity to re-discover once again all the excellent professionals we have in our country and all over Latin-America, which inspires me to keep on working to make us connect and grow together in these fields. So, I really experienced this personal and professional growth since I joined GRSS. Looking to the future, I hope to keep on building the same skills.

What specific GRSS activities do you hope to take advantage of in the future?

I already joined most of the GRSS activities in my home country, Argentina. We have two fixed activities per year – a special session in the IEEE annual conference and a yearly advanced spring school. I participated in almost all of them since 2023, and they provided me with great experience and knowledge. In addition, last year I was invited to participate in the chapter board as the Chapter Treasurer. From that moment on, I’ve been working with a wonderful team, always thinking new activities, not only for the Argentinian community, but also to collaborate with the Latin American community. From a new distinguished lecturer to organizing new events/activities (added to the fixed ones), and even supporting new programs (WiLATAM), we faced many challenges. Volunteering to GRSS has always been more than rewarding.

All these activities allow me to connect with professionals in the same field, over my home country and all over the world. My plan is to keep doing this… to keep volunteering. I want to make the most out of every opportunity, and to enjoy creating opportunities for others, as well as expanding my own knowledge, skills and professional network.

Whether you decide to stay in academia or go into industry, how do you expect GRSS will help you after you get your PhD?

Mostly I am hoping that all the connections that I made through my path in GRSS will help me to get new opportunities, new career or collaboration opportunities in the future. I started my PhD one year ago, so I still have a long way to go.

Has your experience with GRSS differed in any way, good or bad, from what you expected?

At the beginning I did not understand much about GRSS, and it was not fulfilling my expectations when I started. But when I involved myself in the volunteering activities, I realized that’s the way of participating: involving yourself in. I found such a varied and rich community with many opportunities that changed my mind about GRSS. I believe volunteering is what makes connections, even new friends, and helps get you into the different activities that are being developed. So, it’s rewarding as long as you commit to the idea of volunteering.

In the near future, at what GRSS events can the readers of this article hope to see you?

You can find me at IGARSS 2026, in Washington D.C! I will be orally presenting the paper “Self-Supervised Classification of InSAR Displacement Time Series: a Comparison Between an LSTM-Based Autoencoder and ICA”, in the TU4.R16: Urban: Advanced InSAR and SAR for Urban Geotechnics I Session, on Tuesday, August 11, from 16:15 to 17:30. I will be also participating in the NASA VEDA booth (please, come to say hi and find out more about this amazing new platform!).

What words of encouragement would you offer to young researchers, academics like yourself, who are thinking about joining GRSS?

I would say: enroll yourself, volunteer, and discover all that this community has to offer. Joining GRSS is not just a matter of acquiring a membership for a personal benefit, but it goes way beyond. It is about thinking big and together as a community. It is about developing activities and creating opportunities that are beneficial for all of us, and to create new bonds that can lead to new collaborations. So, it is important to take an active role, to reach out to people and to offer a hand. It is important to think outside the box and to follow the true volunteering soul, which involves working for bigger aim rather than just the personal benefit. So, when we think and we work for others, at some point “we receive what we give’, and GRSS has demonstrated this to me many times.

Bonus question – Thinking back on your academic career, probably undergraduate, was there one class or one professor who helped determine the direction that your career was heading?

Absolutely! I would like to acknowledge Dr. Claudio Carignano, a recognized structural geology professor, which I met during my undergraduate studies and was the first person encouraging me to work with satellite data. He suggested me to study subsidence using InSAR and connected me with Instituto Gulich, CONAE (Argentinian Space Agency) for my professional practices. There, I developed my work under the guidance of Dr. Santiago Seppi, the second person I sincerely thank. He dedicated his time to explaining the basics to me and made the connections that later led me to Italy. In Italy, Dr. Francesca Cigna has been my guide and inspiration; working with her not only expanded my knowledge of InSAR and data processing but also taught me how to conduct research in general. She also motivated me to pursue a PhD, for all of which I am completely grateful. Last but not least, I would like to highlight Dr. Maria Victoria Marinelli, who first invited me to GRSS, believed in me and involved me in different activities that really made the difference in my personal and professional growth. Volunteering with her and Sabrina Beninato in the chapter is truly a pleasure, their work and attitude towards others are inspiring for me.

Connect with Celina: www.linkedin.com/in/celina-anael-farías-70b685283/

Email: celina.farias@ieee.org

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