Marian Cabrera Soto
Marian Cabrera Soto is a Research & Content Intern at Data-Pop Alliance, where she supports mixed-methods research, instrument design (surveys, interview and FGD guides), data cleaning and analysis, and the production of policy-oriented briefs and visual summaries across DPA’s thematic programs.
She is currently pursuing a Master 2 « Management – Conseil et Recherche (MCR) » (Master’s in Management—Consulting and Research) at the IAE, Université de Lorraine (expected July 2026). She holds an M.Sc. in Business Administration from the University of Havana, where her thesis focused on designing specialized incubators for sustainable local development, and a BSc in Economic Sciences (Economics and Business Administration) (Summa Cum Laude) with a thesis on blockchain and cryptocurrencies. At the University of Havana she also taught courses in Political Economy, Epistemology of Economic Science, Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Design Thinking. Her academic work of over 8 years, emphasizes translating complex information into usable tools or messages for practitioners and students.
Professionally, Marian served as Director of InCuba, Cuba’s first university-based business incubator, where she co-designed and managed 10+ multi-stakeholder projects and programs (EU, UNDP, JICA) and incubated 18+ ventures across food systems, sustainable energy, digital transformation and social innovation, among others. She worked as a Fintech Consultant for UNDP, first mapping Cuba’s fintech ecosystem and delivering policy-oriented recommendations.
Her recognitions include the University of Havana Academic Merit Award, speaking highlights include mentoring Cuba’s 1st and 2nd place winners in DAAD’s “Breaking Walls” pitch competition (Havana). She has delivered talks and workshops with European and Latin American partners, and program design and facilitation for large-scale trainings and forums for universities, municipalities, and ecosystem partners on innovation, MSMEs, and evidence-based decision-making.
Marian’s interests include data analysis for sustainable development and evidence-to-policy translation, energy transition and local innovation ecosystems, transversal program design, and responsible use of AI and new technologies.