On September 6, the Amazon Sustainable Landscapes (ASL) Program participated virtually at the IUCN World Conservation Congress. The experience of the program in promoting collaboration among multiple and diverse stakeholders to conserve and sustainably develop the Amazon was presented in a virtual session entitled “Collaboration for Protecting the Amazon People and Nature: the case of the Amazon Sustainable Landscapes Program”. It was an opportunity to hear inspiring talks by a high-level panel with government, private sector, science, and donor representatives presenting different points of view on the opportunities and challenges for collaboration in the Amazon and how programs like the ASL can address them. The event was moderated by Anna Wellenstein, Regional Director, Latin America and the Caribbean, Sustainable Development Practice Group with closing remarks by Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, CEO, GEF, and Valery Hickey, Practice Manager, Global Environment and Natural Resources Practice.
Panel moderator
Anna Wellenstein, Regional Director Sustainable Development Practice Group, Latin America and the Caribbean, World Bank
Facilitator
Charo Lanao, Consultant, World Bank
Speakers
Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, CEO, Global Environment Facility (GEF)
Ana Maria Gonzalez, Coordinator, Amazon Sustainable Landscapes (ASL) Program, World Bank
Valerie Hickey, Practice Manager, World Bank
Panelists
Nicolás Galarza, Vice-Minister of Environment and Territorial Planning, Ministry of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Colombia
Carina Pimenta, Executive Director Conexus, Brazil
Avecita Chicchon, Program Director Andes-Amazon Initiative, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
Emma Torres, Vice President of Americas and Head of New York Office, Sustainable Development Solutions Network
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Carlos Manuel Rodríguez, CEO and Chairperson, Global Environment Facility
Lawyer by profession, politician by choice, and conservationist at heart, Carlos Manuel Rodriguez was elected as CEO and Chairperson of the Global Environment Facility by its governing body, the GEF Council, in June 2020. The former Costa Rican Environment and Energy Minister was a pioneer in the development of Payment for Ecosystem Services initiatives and strategies for forest restoration, ocean conservation, and de-carbonization, and is an internationally recognized expert on environmental policy, multilateral environmental negotiations, and financing for nature conservation. During his three terms as Minister of Environment and Energy, Costa Rica doubled the size of its forests, made its electric sector 100 percent clean and renewable, and consolidated a National Park System that has positioned the Central American country as a prime ecotourism destination. Rodriguez has held various technical and political positions over the past 30 years.
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Anna Wellenstein, Director of Strategy and Operations, Global Social, Urban, Rural and Resilience Practice / Regional Director, Latin America and the Caribbean, Sustainable Development Practice Group, The World Bank
Anna is responsible for the World Bank’s portfolios of agriculture, climate, disaster risk management, environment, land, social, urban and water in the Latin America region. She was a key member of the Global Practice leadership team that established the analysis and funding strategy in areas such as disaster risk reduction, urban renewal and geospatial technology. Anna has more than 20 years of experience in urban development and infrastructure. She has led efforts to design and finance investments, facilitate policy reforms and build capacity to help developing countries reduce poverty and boost equity.
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Ana Maria González, Senior Environment Specialist and Program Coordinator, Amazon Sustainable Landscapes Program, The World Bank
Ana Maria, a Colombian national, has worked at the World Bank since 2008 on conservation and sustainable development projects in the African and Latin American regions. She is currently Senior Environmental Specialist and coordinator of the Sustainable Landscapes of the Amazon Program, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF). This program currently includes projects in Colombia, Peru and Brazil, and contemplates a second phase where Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana and Suriname will join. She previously worked at The Nature Conservancy and, in her home country at multiple research, public and civil society organizations. Ana Maria is an economist and holds two master’s degrees in Environmental Economics and Natural Resources from the University of the Andes and International Development from George Washington University.
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Nicolas Galarza, Vice Minister, Environmental Planning of the Territory, Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, Colombia
Master in Urban Planning from New York University and researcher in sustainable development and urban growth. He served as Director of Urban and Territorial Space of the Ministry of Housing of Colombia from August 2019 to October 2020, month in which he assumed the position of Vice Minister of Environmental Planning of the Territory. He has worked with several international cooperation institutions and is an internationalist at the University of Rosario.
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Avecita Chicchon, Program Director, Andes-Amazon Initiative, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
Avecita leads the Andes-Amazon Initiative of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, which aims to ensure the biodiversity and climate function of the Amazon biome. Avecita has more than 30 years of experience in the use of natural resources, biodiversity conservation and sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean. She has a PhD in anthropology from the University of Florida. She has a degree in social sciences from the University of Cincinnati and the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru.
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Carina Pimenta, Executive Director, Conexsus
Carina has developed the Conexsus Impact Fund platform that is a business tool that can develop a variety of financial products tailored to specific communities and companies, addressing the gap in how smallholder farms and forest dwellers in Brazil access available financing. Carina has a degree in Business Administration from the Getúlio Vargas Foundation and a master’s degree in Social Development from the University of Sussex.
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Emma Torres, Vice President of the Americas and Head of the New York Office, Sustainable Development Solutions Network
Emma has worked to promote two important initiatives: SDSN Amazon and Rio: A Sustainable City, from the Sustainable Development Solutions Network. She is currently Director of the Regional Programme for LAC and Deputy Executive Coordinator of UNDP/GEF, a partnership between UNDP, UNEP and the World Bank. She has a master’s degree in Economics from the Complutense University of Madrid, and a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Economics and Climate Change from IIED - Harvard University.
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Valerie Hickey, Practice Manager, Global Environment and Natural Resources Practice, the World Bank
Valerie worked across the Bank supporting the design and implementation of a variety of operations around the world, including in fragile states, where she led the Bank’s environmental portfolio in Haiti following the 2010 earthquake. As president of biodiversity and wildlife crime communities, Valerie represents the World Bank in international conventions related to biodiversity. It also leads the Bank’s work in two global biodiversity grant operations, the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund and the Save Our Species Programme. Valerie holds a PhD in Environmental Science and Policy from Duke University and a master’s degree in negotiations from Notre Dame.
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Calendar » Collaboration for Protecting the Amazon People and Nature: the case of the Amazon Sustainable Landscapes Program at IUCN World Conservation Congress
Collaboration for Protecting the Amazon People and Nature: the case of the Amazon Sustainable Landscapes Program at IUCN World Conservation Congress
Panel moderator
Anna Wellenstein, Regional Director Sustainable Development Practice Group, Latin America and the Caribbean, World Bank
Facilitator
Charo Lanao, Consultant, World Bank
Speakers
Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, CEO, Global Environment Facility (GEF)
Ana Maria Gonzalez, Coordinator, Amazon Sustainable Landscapes (ASL) Program, World Bank
Valerie Hickey, Practice Manager, World Bank
Panelists
Nicolás Galarza, Vice-Minister of Environment and Territorial Planning, Ministry of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Colombia
Carina Pimenta, Executive Director Conexus, Brazil
Avecita Chicchon, Program Director Andes-Amazon Initiative, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
Emma Torres, Vice President of Americas and Head of New York Office, Sustainable Development Solutions Network
Carlos Manuel Rodríguez, CEO and Chairperson, Global Environment Facility
Lawyer by profession, politician by choice, and conservationist at heart, Carlos Manuel Rodriguez was elected as CEO and Chairperson of the Global Environment Facility by its governing body, the GEF Council, in June 2020. The former Costa Rican Environment and Energy Minister was a pioneer in the development of Payment for Ecosystem Services initiatives and strategies for forest restoration, ocean conservation, and de-carbonization, and is an internationally recognized expert on environmental policy, multilateral environmental negotiations, and financing for nature conservation. During his three terms as Minister of Environment and Energy, Costa Rica doubled the size of its forests, made its electric sector 100 percent clean and renewable, and consolidated a National Park System that has positioned the Central American country as a prime ecotourism destination. Rodriguez has held various technical and political positions over the past 30 years.
Anna is responsible for the World Bank’s portfolios of agriculture, climate, disaster risk management, environment, land, social, urban and water in the Latin America region. She was a key member of the Global Practice leadership team that established the analysis and funding strategy in areas such as disaster risk reduction, urban renewal and geospatial technology. Anna has more than 20 years of experience in urban development and infrastructure. She has led efforts to design and finance investments, facilitate policy reforms and build capacity to help developing countries reduce poverty and boost equity.
Ana Maria González, Senior Environment Specialist and Program Coordinator, Amazon Sustainable Landscapes Program, The World Bank
Ana Maria, a Colombian national, has worked at the World Bank since 2008 on conservation and sustainable development projects in the African and Latin American regions. She is currently Senior Environmental Specialist and coordinator of the Sustainable Landscapes of the Amazon Program, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF). This program currently includes projects in Colombia, Peru and Brazil, and contemplates a second phase where Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana and Suriname will join. She previously worked at The Nature Conservancy and, in her home country at multiple research, public and civil society organizations. Ana Maria is an economist and holds two master’s degrees in Environmental Economics and Natural Resources from the University of the Andes and International Development from George Washington University.
Nicolas Galarza, Vice Minister, Environmental Planning of the Territory, Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, Colombia
Master in Urban Planning from New York University and researcher in sustainable development and urban growth. He served as Director of Urban and Territorial Space of the Ministry of Housing of Colombia from August 2019 to October 2020, month in which he assumed the position of Vice Minister of Environmental Planning of the Territory. He has worked with several international cooperation institutions and is an internationalist at the University of Rosario.
Avecita Chicchon, Program Director, Andes-Amazon Initiative, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
Avecita leads the Andes-Amazon Initiative of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, which aims to ensure the biodiversity and climate function of the Amazon biome. Avecita has more than 30 years of experience in the use of natural resources, biodiversity conservation and sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean. She has a PhD in anthropology from the University of Florida. She has a degree in social sciences from the University of Cincinnati and the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru.
Carina Pimenta, Executive Director, Conexsus
Carina has developed the Conexsus Impact Fund platform that is a business tool that can develop a variety of financial products tailored to specific communities and companies, addressing the gap in how smallholder farms and forest dwellers in Brazil access available financing. Carina has a degree in Business Administration from the Getúlio Vargas Foundation and a master’s degree in Social Development from the University of Sussex.
Emma Torres, Vice President of the Americas and Head of the New York Office, Sustainable Development Solutions Network
Emma has worked to promote two important initiatives: SDSN Amazon and Rio: A Sustainable City, from the Sustainable Development Solutions Network. She is currently Director of the Regional Programme for LAC and Deputy Executive Coordinator of UNDP/GEF, a partnership between UNDP, UNEP and the World Bank. She has a master’s degree in Economics from the Complutense University of Madrid, and a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Economics and Climate Change from IIED - Harvard University.
Valerie Hickey, Practice Manager, Global Environment and Natural Resources Practice, the World Bank
Valerie worked across the Bank supporting the design and implementation of a variety of operations around the world, including in fragile states, where she led the Bank’s environmental portfolio in Haiti following the 2010 earthquake. As president of biodiversity and wildlife crime communities, Valerie represents the World Bank in international conventions related to biodiversity. It also leads the Bank’s work in two global biodiversity grant operations, the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund and the Save Our Species Programme. Valerie holds a PhD in Environmental Science and Policy from Duke University and a master’s degree in negotiations from Notre Dame.
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