María Teresa Galarza Neira is a writer, producer, educator, and researcher with strengths in the design and implementation of social research through art. She holds undergraduate degrees in film, education, and law, and postgraduate degrees in communication, film, cultural studies, and education. She also holds a Ph.D. in Gender and Human Rights, focused on film and creative writing, from the University of Melbourne, Australia.

A member of PYDLOS-DIEP and METPRO, María Teresa is a professor of Screenwriting and Ethics at UCUENCA and coordinator of REDIC – the Creative Research Network. She has also co-directed research projects on racism and human mobility, which were awarded funding by VIUC-UCUENCA.

María Teresa has presented her academic and artistic work in Latin America, Europe, Oceania, and Southeast Asia. Her interdisciplinary approach has allowed her to publish in indexed journals in the fields of arts, communication, and legal studies.

She is currently co-directing the first art-related project to win the CEDIA R&D&I Fund: Socio-Cultural Innovation and Care Policies, focused on diverse maternities; while completing two recent audiovisual works: Tejiendo Caminos, a feature-length documentary on human mobility, gender, and the popular and solidarity economy; and Somos paja de cerro, an audiovisual essay featuring fragments in six ancestral languages of Ecuador alongside Spanish.