Marielly Casanova is a licensed architect from Venezuela, she holds a Master Degree in Architecture and Urban Design from Columbia University in NY, and recently finished her Doctoral thesis called “Social Strategies Building the City: a Re-conceptualization of Social Housing in Latin America” at the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany.

Currently Casanova is researching and teaching at the Institute of City Planning and Urban Design at the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany. In addition, she is also working on the development and implementation of research methodologies for the assessment of urban problems and potentials in disadvantaged neighborhoods. Previously she was working on research projects - specifically on urban issues in developing countries - and teaching at the Urban-Think Tank Institute for Architecture and Urban Design at the ETH Zürich. Previously, Casanova worked for five years as a project manager and head of the department of the Public Domain Projects, Municipality of Chacao - Caracas, Venezuela - designing, managing and implementing guidelines, projects, and urban regulations.