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Luis Felipe Salazar Arcila
Technical Specialist
Felipe is an environmental engineer from Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas (Bogotá D.C.) and holds a master's degree in Sustainable Development from Universidad del Valle (Cali). He joined WCS at the end of 2017 as a consultant in Geographic Information Systems - GIS, providing support to land cover interpretation projects, prioritization of areas for the allocation of compensation actions and processes of administration and declaration of protected areas, among others. She currently supports planning and decision making in the line of Sustainable Landscapes. Her main research interests are geographic analysis, interdisciplinary work with local communities, wetland ecosystems, environmental history and socio-ecological systems.
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Luis Felipe Salazar Arcila
Technical Specialist
Felipe is an environmental engineer from Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas (Bogotá D.C.) and holds a master's degree in Sustainable Development from Universidad del Valle (Cali). He joined WCS at the end of 2017 as a consultant in Geographic Information Systems - GIS, providing support to land cover interpretation projects, prioritization of areas for the allocation of compensation actions and processes of administration and declaration of protected areas, among others. She currently supports planning and decision making in the line of Sustainable Landscapes. Her main research interests are geographic analysis, interdisciplinary work with local communities, wetland ecosystems, environmental history and socio-ecological systems.
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Luisa Rincón Bustamante
Big mammal specialist
Biologist from the University of Quindío, with five years of experience in the study, monitoring and management of the Andean bear. Luisa is in charge of supporting the technical coordination of the field work and the management actions of the Conservamos la Vida project developed in the Central and Western mountain ranges of Colombia.
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Luisa Rincón Bustamante
Big mammal specialist
Biologist from the University of Quindío, with five years of experience in the study, monitoring and management of the Andean bear. Luisa is in charge of supporting the technical coordination of the field work and the management actions of the Conservamos la Vida project developed in the Central and Western mountain ranges of Colombia.
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Luz Dary Acevedo
Wildlife Health Program Wildlife Trafficking
Luz Dary is a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine DVM from the Universidad del Tolima (Ibagué, Colombia). For more than 15 years, she has worked in wildlife health, management, and conservation in different zones of the country, especially in protected areas. She coordinated the Wildlife Program and generated the National Wildlife Strategy for National Parks of Colombia. Her experience Wildlife Health has been focused on the surveillance of diseases and the assessment of associated risk factors to reduce threats in different species and landscapes, including the development of conservation initiatives with peasant, indigenous, and Afro-descendant communities. She joined the WCS Colombia Program in 2012 and since then she has coordinated the Wildlife Health Program and since 2017 she has led the initiatives of the Colombia Program to reduce Wildlife trafficking, jointly with WCS countries in the Andes-Amazonia region. With the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, she supports the implementation of the National and Binational Strategies for the prevention and control of wildlife trafficking, as well as the National conservation programs for threatened species, especially amphibians and primates.
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Luz Dary Acevedo
Wildlife Health Program Wildlife Trafficking
Luz Dary is a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine DVM from the Universidad del Tolima (Ibagué, Colombia). For more than 15 years, she has worked in wildlife health, management, and conservation in different zones of the country, especially in protected areas. She coordinated the Wildlife Program and generated the National Wildlife Strategy for National Parks of Colombia. Her experience Wildlife Health has been focused on the surveillance of diseases and the assessment of associated risk factors to reduce threats in different species and landscapes, including the development of conservation initiatives with peasant, indigenous, and Afro-descendant communities. She joined the WCS Colombia Program in 2012 and since then she has coordinated the Wildlife Health Program and since 2017 she has led the initiatives of the Colombia Program to reduce Wildlife trafficking, jointly with WCS countries in the Andes-Amazonia region. With the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, she supports the implementation of the National and Binational Strategies for the prevention and control of wildlife trafficking, as well as the National conservation programs for threatened species, especially amphibians and primates.
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Manuel Andrés Rodríguez Rocha
Conservation areas leader
Manuel is a biologist from the Universidad de Los Andes in Colombia, with more than 10 years of experience in research and monitoring within the framework of the conservation areas. He has an academic master's degree in Management and Conservation of Tropical Forests and Biodiversity (CATIE) evaluating the "Potential responses of fruit bats to climate change, in conservation areas in an altitude gradient of the Caribbean of Costa Rica." His professional interest has focused on the use of information in the management of socio-ecological systems. He is currently Leader of Conservation Areas at WCS Colombia, supporting processes to expand conservation areas and the implementation of the SMART (spatial monitoring and reporting tool) to strengthen the management of research data. and monitoring in the National System of Protected Areas.
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Manuel Andrés Rodríguez Rocha
Conservation areas leader
Manuel is a biologist from the Universidad de Los Andes in Colombia, with more than 10 years of experience in research and monitoring within the framework of the conservation areas. He has an academic master's degree in Management and Conservation of Tropical Forests and Biodiversity (CATIE) evaluating the "Potential responses of fruit bats to climate change, in conservation areas in an altitude gradient of the Caribbean of Costa Rica." His professional interest has focused on the use of information in the management of socio-ecological systems. He is currently Leader of Conservation Areas at WCS Colombia, supporting processes to expand conservation areas and the implementation of the SMART (spatial monitoring and reporting tool) to strengthen the management of research data. and monitoring in the National System of Protected Areas.
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Mara Contreras
Protected new areas coordinator
Mara is a biologist with an MSc in Environmental Sustainability Management. She has 16 years of experience working in protected areas. She currently supports, scientifically, the implementation of the route for declaration of new prioritized protected areas in Colombia.
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Mara Contreras
Protected new areas coordinator
Mara is a biologist with an MSc in Environmental Sustainability Management. She has 16 years of experience working in protected areas. She currently supports, scientifically, the implementation of the route for declaration of new prioritized protected areas in Colombia.
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Maria Antonia Espitia
Magdalena local leader
María Antonia is a psychologist. She joined WCS in 2014 as coordinator of the Wildlife Project in the Magdalena Medio region. She has led the development of participatory, organizational, educational, investigative, deliberative and environmental territorial planning practices within rural communities, with the purpose of enabling them to act as managers of their own initiatives. With her work, María Antonia mainly strives to strengthen the healthy coexistence between man and nature.
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Maria Antonia Espitia
Magdalena local leader
María Antonia is a psychologist. She joined WCS in 2014 as coordinator of the Wildlife Project in the Magdalena Medio region. She has led the development of participatory, organizational, educational, investigative, deliberative and environmental territorial planning practices within rural communities, with the purpose of enabling them to act as managers of their own initiatives. With her work, María Antonia mainly strives to strengthen the healthy coexistence between man and nature.
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María del Pilar Aguirre
Especialista en Monitoreo
Biologist with a Master's degree in Biological Sciences from the University of Valle (Colombia), where she studied diversity patterns, taxonomy, and systematics of a family of beetles (Elateridae) in Colombia and Ecuador, leading to the description of several new species for science. Her passion for the conservation, management, and protection of natural resources drove her to dedicate several years to preserving coastal marine ecosystems in the Colombian Pacific, prompting her to specialize in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) at the University of Santiago de Cali. She evaluated the risk of collision between cargo ships and humpback whales in the tropical eastern Pacific.
María del Pilar started her work at WCS as a consultant and is currently part of the organization's monitoring team, actively contributing to species conservation in landscapes and their habitats, the monitoring of conservation strategies (working with communities, reforestation, conservation agreements, biological corridors), and decision-making.
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María del Pilar Aguirre
Especialista en Monitoreo
Biologist with a Master's degree in Biological Sciences from the University of Valle (Colombia), where she studied diversity patterns, taxonomy, and systematics of a family of beetles (Elateridae) in Colombia and Ecuador, leading to the description of several new species for science. Her passion for the conservation, management, and protection of natural resources drove her to dedicate several years to preserving coastal marine ecosystems in the Colombian Pacific, prompting her to specialize in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) at the University of Santiago de Cali. She evaluated the risk of collision between cargo ships and humpback whales in the tropical eastern Pacific.
María del Pilar started her work at WCS as a consultant and is currently part of the organization's monitoring team, actively contributing to species conservation in landscapes and their habitats, the monitoring of conservation strategies (working with communities, reforestation, conservation agreements, biological corridors), and decision-making.
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Mauricio Alberto Correa Salazar
Specialist in Conservation Alternatives
Biologist with an emphasis in zoology from the Universidad del Valle, I have experience in groups of turtles and crocodiles in Colombia, as well as with flying and terrestrial mammals, especially medium and large mammals. I have developed works on population dynamics and species conservation. My main interest is teaching communities to maintain a good coexistence with wildlife. During the last years I have focused on working for the conservation of the river turtle of the eastern plains, mainly in conservation strategies based on participatory monitoring of the communities that inhabit its territory. I am currently developing as a specialist in alternatives for conservation, supporting conservation initiatives through the generation of agreements that allow the development of communities and the protection of wildlife.
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Mauricio Alberto Correa Salazar
Specialist in Conservation Alternatives
Biologist with an emphasis in zoology from the Universidad del Valle, I have experience in groups of turtles and crocodiles in Colombia, as well as with flying and terrestrial mammals, especially medium and large mammals. I have developed works on population dynamics and species conservation. My main interest is teaching communities to maintain a good coexistence with wildlife. During the last years I have focused on working for the conservation of the river turtle of the eastern plains, mainly in conservation strategies based on participatory monitoring of the communities that inhabit its territory. I am currently developing as a specialist in alternatives for conservation, supporting conservation initiatives through the generation of agreements that allow the development of communities and the protection of wildlife.
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Mónica Lozano Hernández
Financial Manager
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Mónica Lozano Hernández
Financial Manager
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Paola Andrea Mejía
Marine Leader
Biologist and Doctor in Sciences-Biology from the Universidad del Valle, Colombia. Marine leader of WCS Colombia since 2017. She has been supporting processes for the declaration and management of marine protected areas, as well as strategic planning processes based on community participation and adaptive management, as mechanisms to direct and execute actions towards the sustainability of the resources and their ecosystem services. She has experience in population assessments of fishery resources, based on both life history and demographics and poor data, aiming to contribute to the management of those resources of economic importance and food security of coastal communities.
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Paola Andrea Mejía
Marine Leader
Biologist and Doctor in Sciences-Biology from the Universidad del Valle, Colombia. Marine leader of WCS Colombia since 2017. She has been supporting processes for the declaration and management of marine protected areas, as well as strategic planning processes based on community participation and adaptive management, as mechanisms to direct and execute actions towards the sustainability of the resources and their ecosystem services. She has experience in population assessments of fishery resources, based on both life history and demographics and poor data, aiming to contribute to the management of those resources of economic importance and food security of coastal communities.
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