Irene Cornacchia is a researcher at the Institute of Geosciences and Earth Resources (IGG) of the Italian National Research Council from November 2019. Master Degree in Esploration Geology (2014) and PhD in Sedimentology and Stratigraphy (2018) at the Earth Sciences Department of the Sapienza, University of Rome. Postdoctoral fellow at the GeoZentrum Nordbayern of the Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen, Germany (2018-2019), Irene is currently Associated Editor of the Geological Magazine and member of the Coordinating Committee of GeoSed (Sedimentology and Stratigraphy section of the Italian Geological Society).

Irene Cornacchia’s research focuses on how shallow-water carbonate systems responded to climate changes and perturbations of the carbon cycle, in particular in the Cenozoic record of the Mediterranean area. In this framework, Irene studies the relationship between climate trends and regional controlling factors –geodynamics and oceanographic changes- affecting carbonate production as well as its changes and crises. With a multidisciplinary approach, Irene integrates a solid facies and microfacies analyses with detailed isotope geochemistry studies of oxygen and carbon isotope stratigraphy, to identify climate changes and carbon cycle perturbations, as well as strontium and neodymium radiogenic isotopes, proxies of seawater chemistry and powerful tools to identify the role of oceanographic changes in controlling carbonate production.