The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) expresses its sorrow at the passing, on May 5, of Maria Luisa Gomes Castello Branco, geographer and researcher whose professional history left a relevant legacy to Geography in Brazil and in this Institution.

Maria Luisa Gomes Castello Branco joined the IBGE in 1976, where he built a solid career marked by the dedication to research, institutional management and production of knowledge about urbanization in Brazil. She worked as head of the Geography Department and was Geography Coordinator at the IBGE, having led strategic projects among including the Atlas of Literary Representations of Brazilian Major Regions, which expanded the dialogue between Geography, culture and the territory.

In the academic field, her background is equally significant. She got a doctoral degree in Geography from the Institute of Geosciences of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), in 2003, with the dissertation “Urban spaces: a proposal for Brazil.” Previously, she had finished her master’s course in Geography, also at UFRJ, in 1978, with the thesis “Urbanization and industrialization in the state of São Paulo”.

Among the highlights in her intellectual are studies about pendular movement, medium-sized cities and the organization of urban clusters in Brazil, which consist of a major contribution to the methodological and conceptual depth of urban surveys in Brazil.

The IBGE extends its condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Maria Luisa Gomes Castello Branco, whose work, ethics and intellectual contribution will remain as a reference and inspiration to future generations of geographers.