Dr Luis A. Parra Avila, from Venezuela, earned his Bachelor's degree in 2007 at the University of Central Missouri, then moved to the state of Illinois to work on his Master's degree, which he earned in 2010 at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale. His Masters' thesis involved Co-Ni enriched Mississippi Valley-type deposits in southeast Missouri. For the project, he had the support of the "The Doe Run Co.

After concluding his Master's degree, he decided to continue his education at the Centre for Exploration Targeting (CET), University of Western Australia, where he earned his PhD in 2016. His PhD project at CET focused on establishing the crustal tectonic history of the Paleoproterozoic Domain of the West African Craton across Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali, Ivory Coast and Guinea and its links to mineral deposits. The project was funded through the ARC linkage program and was part of the AMIRA West Africa Exploration Program (P934A).

In October 2015, Luis joined the CCFS as a Post-Doctoral Research Associate. His research evaluated zircon characteristics and their link to porphyry Cu deposits. The project seeks to develop new pathfinders to assist with the exploration of porphyry Cu deposits and understand the difference between fertile and unfertile tectonic environments for such deposits.

In 2017 Luis started a new project to unravel the geologic history of Northern Thailand. This project focuses on the tectonic history (collision and amalgamation) of continental and arc terranes, including the closure of ocean basins across the Sukhothai (arc) terrane, Nan Suture zone and western Indochina terrane. This project follows and expands on existing work in the Loei-Phetchabun Foldbelt and mid-Triassic intrusive magmatism associated with the subduction of Paleotethys seafloor beneath western Indochina. The project is multidisciplinary and will integrate new field-based data collection with state-of-the-art geochronological techniques and geochemical and isotopic fingerprinting to substantially build on previous petrological and geochemical studies in the region. The results of this study will provide a geologically 'young' example of continental crustal evolution to compare with Archean and Proterozoic models in Australia and other ancient cratonic regions elsewhere, as well as a context for understanding the formation of particular mineral deposits.

In 2022 Luis was appointed Senior Research Officer (Industry Support Microscopist/Analyst) in the Centre for Microscopy, Characterisation and Analysis. The new role seeks to liaise directly with industry clients, university researchers working with industry, and local Microscopy Australia node staff supporting industry-funded projects to develop and deliver new microscopy-related projects and initiatives. Additionally, it will provide training, advice, and expertise to support new and existing industry-related projects, predominantly in the field of geosciences. It will also seek to engage with similar industry support staff at other Microscopy Australia nodes to form a national network providing industry links.

Provide expert advice and research support to industry clients and researchers working with industry, predominantly in the geosciences, on the application of microscopy and/or related analytical techniques, including sample preparation, data acquisition, and data analysis/interpretation
Undertake microscopy/analytical service work for industry clients using one or more of the existing Microscopy Australia node instruments
Design and implement strategies to promote the capabilities of the WA Microscopy Australia node to potential industry clients, particularly in the geosciences
Develop and manage industry-linked projects, working in collaboration with other node staff where necessary
Engage with other Microscopy Australia and UWA staff to manage industry enquiries and processes related to quotations and contracts associated with industry clients
Manage key stakeholder relationships and collaborations, for example, with clients, other parts of the University, and government agencies