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Universität Kassel | Wilhelmshöher Allee 47 | 34117 Kassel

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Lira Luz Benites Lazaro

State University of Campinas (Brazil)

Lira Luz Benites Lazaro

State University of Campinas (Brazil)

Universität Kassel | Wilhelmshöher Allee 47 | 34117 Kassel

Email:  

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biographie

Lira Luz Benites Lazaro holds a PhD in Earth System Science from the Center for Earth System Science at the National Institute for Space Research (CCST-INPE, Brazil). She is a researcher with the Sustainable Campus Program at the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP) and the São Paulo Center for Energy Transition Studies (CPTEn), where she coordinates research on green hydrogen and the regulatory, technological, and industrial challenges of energy transitions in Mercosur. She specializes in climate and energy policy, energy transitions, and environmental governance. She is a member of the Energy and Sustainable Development Working Group of the Latin American Council of Social Sciences (CLACSO), where she coordinates research lines on energy poverty, gender and energy justice, and the geopolitics of energy transitions in Latin America. Her work explores the intersections of decarbonization agendas, natural resource extraction, socio-environmental justice, and sustainable development, with a particular focus on Latin America.

short
biographie

Lira Luz Benites Lazaro holds a PhD in Earth System Science from the Center for Earth System Science at the National Institute for Space Research (CCST-INPE, Brazil). She is a researcher with the Sustainable Campus Program at the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP) and the São Paulo Center for Energy Transition Studies (CPTEn), where she coordinates research on green hydrogen and the regulatory, technological, and industrial challenges of energy transitions in Mercosur. She specializes in climate and energy policy, energy transitions, and environmental governance. She is a member of the Energy and Sustainable Development Working Group of the Latin American Council of Social Sciences (CLACSO), where she coordinates research lines on energy poverty, gender and energy justice, and the geopolitics of energy transitions in Latin America. Her work explores the intersections of decarbonization agendas, natural resource extraction, socio-environmental justice, and sustainable development, with a particular focus on Latin America.

Contribution to the project

Her contribution to the project focuses on how domestic actor coalitions shape governance of energy transitions and extractive sectors in Latin America. She investigates the roles of governments, business associations, industry actors, civil society organizations, and international stakeholders in shaping regulatory frameworks and development pathways for critical minerals, renewable energy, and green hydrogen. Particular attention is given to lobbying strategies, policy coalitions, competing narratives, and legitimacy-building processes that shape decision-making, revealing how low-carbon transitions generate both new opportunities and new forms of socio-environmental contestation.

recent publications

Lazaro, L. L. B., Usuriaga-Najera, O. C., Neto, A. H., Grimoni, J. A. B., & Jacobi, P. R. (2025). Climate commitments and energy transition pledges in Latin America: Where is the region headed? Energy for Sustainable Development, 88, 101779. VIEW PUBLICATION

Lazaro, L. L. B., Giatti, L. L., Simões, A. F., Giarolla, A., Jacobi, P. R., & Oliveira, J. A. P. (2025). Corporate lobbying, agribusiness, and climate change politics in Brazil’s bioenergy transition. Energy Research & Social Science, 129, 104353. VIEW PUBLICATION

Lazaro, L. L. B., & Serrani, E. (Eds.). (2023). Energy transitions in Latin America: The tough route to sustainable development. Springer.

Lazaro, L. L. B., de Aquino Neiva, S., & Serrani, E. (2024). Energy poverty, justice, and gender in Latin America—Understanding the intersection. In L. L. B. Lazaro, S. de Aquino Neiva, & E. Serrani (Eds.), Energy poverty, justice and gender in Latin America (pp. 1–35). Springer.

Lazaro, L. L. B., & Soares, R. S. (2024). The energy quadrilemma challenges – Insights from the decentralized energy transition in Brazil. Energy Research & Social Science, 113, 103533. VIEW PUBLICATION