Her research is based on the ecology of ecosystems, focusing on the role of plants and soil microorganisms in the biogeochemical and eco-hydrological processes of the arid zones of northern Mexico.

[6] She has focused on studying the effects of social and global aspects, such as cattle grazing, land use change and soil degradation in the integrity of socio-ecological systems for a sustainable development of rural livelihoods.

She is also lead founder of the national network of Social-Ecological Participatory Observatories in Mexico, a social-ecological innovation to collectively produce, compile and exchange knowledge, strengthen transversal multi-stakeholder partnerships for transdisciplinary research and collaborative environmental governance and to foster intercultural dialogue at the science-policy interface targeting sustainable dryland development.

She is the coordinator of the Grupo Regional en Agostaderos Mexicanos para su Investigación y el Liderazgo de su Uso Sustentable (Regional Group in Mexican Ranges for its Research and Leadership of its Sustainable Use) (GRACILIS) and of the Red Mexicana de Investigación Ecológica a Largo Plazo (Mexican Network for Long-Term Ecological Research) (RED MEX-LTER);[7] and the coordinator of the Inter-American Network for Atmospheric and Biospheric Studies (IANABIS).

She is also a member of the executive committee of the Consultative Group on Ecosystem Services of the Sociedad de Toxicología y Química Ambiental.