Current position
Aida Horaniet Ibañez is a Research Scientist in Data Visualization for Digital History, working with the Digital Research Infrastructure team at the Centre for Contemporary and Digital History of the University of Luxembourg.
Research
Her PhD, funded by the Institute for Advanced Studies at the University of Luxembourg, focused on the LuxTIME Machine project, where she collaborated with researchers in history, eco-hydrology, and environmental cheminformatics. The LuxTIME project aimed to create an inventory of social (e.g., official reports, newspapers) and natural archives (e.g., pollution measurements). By integrating these archives, the project sought to expand possibilities for uncovering historical evidence in exposome research. Through this work, she gained valuable insights into the data visualization challenges faced by the humanities, particularly by historians, and the critical role of data visualization in interdisciplinary research. Her other research interests include data literacy, evaluation methods for data visualization in digital humanities, and data physicalization.
Teaching
Aida Horaniet Ibañez teaches data visualization in different disciplines and training sessions in Bachelor and Master courses, workshops (Trading Zone trainings at the Centre for Contemporary and Digital History), and Summer Schools (Data Science, Public History). Her classes cover different methods along the epistemological axis, including quantitative, qualitative, critical/rhetorical and creative ways of visualizing data.
Outreach
Aida Horaniet Ibañez is very active in outreach and science communication activities. In recent years, she has participated in the creation of the comic “It's about Time” for LUX:PLORATIONS, A Universe of Research – which illustrates an interdisciplinary collaboration between a historian and data visualization researcher. She has performed in a Science Slam explaining in a playful way her research in 10 minutes for the general public. She obtained a Thinkering grant along with fellow historians, where they physicalized historical data from Brill Street in a citizen participation project. In addition, Aida regularly publishes about her research in public media (https://www.forum.lu/article/meet-the-researcher-6/, https://www.researchluxembourg.org/en/in-conversation-with-our-young-researchers-aida-horaniet-ibanez/), participates in training sessions such as “Chercheurs à l'école”, trainings at the Université Populaire Luxembourg, scientific podcasts, and creates training materials about data analysis and visualization for all audiences and ages (https://pitt.lu/fr/module/data-viz-superpowers/3-1-indication-didactique/, https://delano.lu/article/delano_bridging-gender-data-gap-through-storytelling). She also volunteers on the board of Viz for Social Good, a non-profit that connects data visualization enthusiasts with organizations with a social mission.
Work experience
Before pursuing her PhD, Aida Horaniet Ibañez spent over a decade in the private sector, working on projects focused on data integration, analysis, reporting, and visualization across various business areas and industries. During this time, she held roles as both an analyst and a manager, leading different teams.
Educational background
Aida Horaniet Ibañez completed a bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications Engineering at the Polytechnic University of Madrid and an international master’s degree in Industrial Management at the Polytechnic University of Madrid, the Polytechnic University of Milan and the Royal Institute of Technology of Stockholm. She holds a PhD in History from the University of Luxembourg.