Born and raised in Haiti, Jean has worked on environmental issues in general, and on coastal and marine issues in Haiti in particular since 1991. In 1992 Jean founded Haiti’s first coastal and marine environmental non-profit the Fondation pour la Protection de la Biodiversité Marine (FoProBiM) and retains his position at the head of the organization. As the Executive Director of FoProBiM he specializes in coastal and marine sciences, environmental monitoring and management, and community development, and has executed a wide range of projects including resource assessments, association building, environmental rehabilitation, community needs evaluations, as well as pure scientific research for institutions as diverse as the Ministry of Environment of Haiti, the UN (UNEP, UNDP, UNESCO, UNOPS), USAID, IDB, NOAA, and the OAS to name but a few. He is also the national focal point in Haiti for the International Coral Reefs Initiative (ICRI), the Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Network (WIDECAST), the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN), NatureCaribe, and several International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) specialist groups among others. He has established contacts at all levels throughout most of Haiti and is considered the national reference point for all things coastal and marine. He is Haiti’s most awarded environmentalist with awards from Condé Nast, two from the Whitley Fund for Nature (presented by HRH Princess Anne), the Erick Eckman Award (Haiti’s first ever environmental award presented by the President and the Minister of Environment), the Goldman Environmental Prize for Islands and Island Nations (2015), the California Academy of Sciences (Conservation Hero, 2016), the Sierra Club (Ocean Hero, 2016), and the Republic of France (Knight in the Order of Agricultural Merit, 2018). He holds a Bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut, USA.
Marta Villasán Barroso
Biodiversity Conservation Biologist , EcoenergĂas del Guadiana / Fauna&Vida NGO / SEO BirdLife
I'm from Badajoz, a little city near Portugal at Extremadura, Spain. I love my region because is plenty of wild nature, birds, forests, rivers... but is endangered too.
I have a BSc in Biology and a MSc in Biodiversity Conservation. I have more than 15 years of experience in Environmental Education with school kids and the general public. I'm interested in all related topics about ecology, conservation and all living creatures and their relationships, that makes possible the life on Earth.
I have worked in Paraguay granted by University of Salamanca and UNESCO Chair "Education for Sustainable Development: Strengthening lines of research in the area of ​​biodiversity and the link with society". My duties were teaching experiments design and basic biostatistics at UNA (Universidad Nacional de Asunción); doing a biodiversity's bird research at the San Rafael National Park (the major Atlantic Forest patch remaining), ringing birds and teaching young students how to carry out a basic research; and doing environmental education with young child and population living at the natural park influence area.
I stayed at Madeira (Portugal) working on two LIFE projects, one to protect the endemic sparrowhawk "Furabardos" and the other to take care of marine birds. The LIFE projects are the UE tool to support and fund the conservation on their territories.
Later I have devoted to natural ecotourism at Extremadura (Spain) and scuba diving tourism at Sharm el Shaik (Egypt), in addition to environmental education, or little research and consultancy tasks. I have a youtube channel to outreach environmental issues and my own talks. Is in Spanish, but if you want you could take a look at it.
Currently, I have a job at an environmental consulting at Extremadura (Spain), working about the compensatory measures to take during and after the construction of photovoltaic plants. I take care of bird nests, mitigation and prevention of bird and bat mortality at the high voltage lines, soil restoration, reforestation, etc. I'm glad to carry out this work because I'm sure I'm doing the best to protect the nature while the construction of renewable energy plants are trying to reduce the climate change.
In addition, I take part from two NGOs: Fauna&Vida, a environmental conservation and education organization from Paraguay, where I'm currently the Education and conservation programs Director, and SEO/BirdLife, the ornithological society to protect birds, where I coordinate the volunteer group in my city.
Dice alumni, Conservation Biology MSc.
Former nature guide & ranger in South Africa - Head of black Rhino monitoring.
Wild food forager & educator.
I am a passionate wildlife photographer and use this medium to tell natures stories surrounding myself and wherever I happen to be working. Particularly interested in forest & marine conservation but have worked in species specific conservation with Elephant, Lion & Rhino.
Currently working in Cambodia with Jahoo, an indigenous community led Gibbon eco-tourism conservation program
Hi, I am Laura and I currently work as a Campaigns Officer for Keep Scotland Beautiful. I have been working/volunteering in conservation for about ten years now but since graduating with my master’s in Wildlife Biology and Conservation in 2015 I have focused my work within the marine sector. I have got to wear many hats over the years including environmental advisor, scientific researchers, fundraiser, community engagement officer and now campaigns.
I work for a marine science & conservation non-profit studying species and habitats in the Salish Sea and beyond. Much of our work involves looks at how anthropogenic impacts like vessel traffic and underwater noise change the behavior of threatened populations such as southern resident killer whales. Other topics we work on include cetacean distribution and habitat use, the estimated effects of deep sea mining, salmon preservation, and habitat restoration. I have skills in GIS, R, and ecological modeling. I am most interested in research involving spatial data, oceanography, and marine vertebrate behavior.
I previously worked on field projects studying cetaceans in British Columbia and sea turtles in Costa Rica, the US, and Australia.
I completed an MRes in Marine Biology at the University of Plymouth where I used density surface models to assess the distribution and abundance of harbour porpoises around the UK.
I'm a recent masters graduate from the University of York, where I studied Marine Environmental Management. Before that, I completed my undergraduate degree in Marine Biology at Plymouth University. I am currently looking for work in marine management and conservation - my interests include sustainable fisheries management and social aspects of sustainable marine use as well as marine conservation. But I am open to all sorts of opportunities! My most recent project was undertaken in partnership with BAS, where I analysed GPS tracking data to assess rafting behaviour of Albatrosses around South Georgia.
Chloe Hatton
Officer 2, People and Places team SE, Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru/Natural Resources Wales
- Currently working on the SE Area Statement for NRW
- Marine biology graduate (first class degree, University of Exeter, 2016-19)
- Expertise in stakeholder engagement and facilitation skills (previous role at Dialogue Matters Ltd.)
- Qualified in Strategy Development for Wildlife Conservation (WildTeam course, 2020)
Alec Christie
Postdoctoral research associate, University of Cambridge, BioRISC (Biosecurity Research Initiative at St Catherine's)
Background: I studied at the University of St Andrews for my BSc Hons in Marine Biology from 2013-2017. During my time I trained and helped conduct research on seals at the SMRU/SOI, cetaceans in Turkey with DMAD, and studied abroad at James Cook University, Australia, undertaking research on coral reefs with Dr Maria Dornelas and Professor Sean Connelly. I was also lucky enough to study polar ecology, including a field course to the Western Antarctic Peninsula in March 2017. I then applied for a PhD project advertised through the Cambridge ESS DTP and joined the Conservation Evidence group in the UCCRI. I completed my PhD in Zoology (Determining the biases and consistences in the evidence for conservation) in March 2021 as a member of King’s College and the University of Cambridge Conservation Research Institute (UCCRI) in the Cambridge Conservation Initiative (CCI).
I am very interested in communicating science and conservation issues to the public and particularly interested in becoming a wildlife television presenter. In my spare time I am also an amateur wildlife photographer, love getting outdoors and playing all sorts of sports when I can.
Current role: I am a Research Associate in the Department of Zoology and the Biosecurity Research Initiative at St Catherine’s (BioRISC) College. My research focuses on applying evidence-based principles from medicine to biodiversity conservation via the Conservation Evidence project. In particular, my work involves co-developing decision support tools with conservationists working to conserve species and provide them with relevant evidence-based recommendations. Currently, I am working on a project to help report tests of invasive species management interventions via an online app and promote more testing of conservation interventions.
Daan van Bendegom
MSc student Biological Sciences (track: Freshwater and Marine Biology), University of Amsterdam
MSc student Biological Sciences (track: Freshwater and Marine Biology) at University of Amsterdam
I have been working as a self-employed artist and musician since 2010 and am now studying marine biology with the aim of moving into the industry since the oceans and conservation have been a life-long passion. I found out about WildHub through the webinar on starting a conservation organisation. I am hoping to learn more from my time here and to meet new people. Marine Biology I am currently studying for a Diploma in marine biology and have just gained a PGCert qualification in GIS. I'm getting involved in voluntary work to gain experience, knowledge, practical skills and to make a difference where I can. Through my music and art work I also have experience in social media, communications and have been involved in numerous local festivals and organising community and charity events.
Hello! I'm Léa and I'm a WildLearning Specialist with WildTeam UK. I help create, design and deliver training courses. I love getting to know all the participants and learning from them :)
Previously, I was working with BirdLife International on forest governance issues and in my previous life I worked in the development sector in the United States. Education-wise, I have studied economic development, international relations as well as tropical forestry in the past.
Hope to catch you in a WildHub social!
Master in Animal Biology, with a deep interest in biodiversity conservation, restoration and climate change. Former collaborator of CoalitionWILD and the Global Rewilding Alliance. Former Coordinator of Actions and Partnerships at Plant-for-the-Planet Brazil and Co-Director at Youth Climate Leaders, currently working as a Climate Change Specialist at WWF-Brazil.
I work for WildTeam UK, helping to deliver training workshops, write conservation best practice manuals and share them as widely as possible. Previously a Writing Fellow working with various conservation organisations across India. Background in research, particularly behavioural ecology. Bird nerd.
I'm a biodiversity consultant working mainly in the corporate space. I work with large companies to help them figure out their nature-related impacts, dependancies, risks and opportunities, then use this information to create biodiversity strategies.