Center for Latin American and Latinx Studies McNeil 473 / Zoom
A panel discussion focusing on the intersection between the vision of a world living in harmony with nature by 2050 and local actions to halt biodiversity loss. This discussion will coincide with COP16, the Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity, to be held in Cali, Colombia from October 21 to November 1, 2024. Building on the momentum of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) established at the last “Biodiversity COP” and its ambitious goals, panelists will highlight how global agreements translate into on-the-ground actions around the world, including in Colombia, Pennsylvania, and even right here in Philadelphia.
Speaker(s):
Introduction:
Carolina Angel Botero, CLALS
Carolina Angel Botero is a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Center for Latin American and Latinx Studies for 2023-2024. She has a Ph.D. in Anthropology from the Universidad de Los Andes (Bogotá, Colombia) and a MA in Anthropology from the New School for Social Research. Her research interests lie in Anthropology and Law, focusing on transitional justice. For her doctoral dissertation, she conducted an ethnography on the practices of scientists during the Colombian government's peace treaty with the FARC guerrilla in 2016. Her current research aims to bridge law, science, and anthropology, focusing on natural sciences' definitions and approximations of nature. During her fellowship, Carolina will continue to explore issues of dispossession and territorial and ecological justice, which are central to the debates in Latin America. Recent developments in Latin American legislation on the rights of nature have led to new questions on the political capacity of "nature" to gain subjecthood, legal standing, and citizenship rights. Her research will study the collaboration between judges, scientists, and local communities with other-than-human beings in creating multispecies environmental justice arguments and efforts. The project's primary objective is to answer questions regarding territorial defense through nature-human alliances.
Moderator:
Kathy Morrison, Faculty Director, Environmental Innovations Initiative
Panelists – Regional perspectives and regional examples:
- Costa Rica and Central America:
Fernanda Jimenez, CLALS
Fernanda Jiménez is a Costa Rican lawyer, specialized in the areas of Environmental and International Law. She holds an LL.M. Degree in Environmental Law and Policy from Stanford University (2017) and a Licenciate Degree (JD equivalent) from the University of Costa Rica (2015). She has worked as the Legal Advisor at the Department of International Cooperation of the UN Mandated University for Peace, and as Legal Consultant with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), helping several governments in the Caribbean region to develop their national biodiversity laws. Before her LL.M., she worked with the Inter-American Association for Environmental Defense (AIDA), collaborating in cases related to Human Rights and the Environment in various Latin American countries. From 2014 to 2016 she was the President of the Costa Rican Society of International Law (ACODI) and she is currently a visiting lecturer at the UN Mandated University for Peace, teaching a class on International Environmental Law.
- Cali, Colombia:
Emilio Latorre, ISCN-LATAM fellow
Emilio Latorre is an engineer from Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia, and has a PhD in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Toulouse, France. He was also a Visiting Professor at Clemson University, South Carolina, USA. With over 30 years of experience as a professor at different higher education institutions, Latorre participated in the genesis of the Colombian environmental policy and minister (Ley 99 de 1993). He also created the Environmental Protection Agency of Cali, Colombia, is a member of the Regional Environmental Corporation of the Cauca Valley (CVC) board of directors and was a member of the Colombian Committee of the ISO14001. He also was the Director of Sustainability for the Fundacion Universitaria Catolica Lumen Gentium, Cali-Colombia. Since 2023, Emilio has served as a senior fellow of the International Sustainable Campus and its Latin American Chapter. Latorre has written extensively about environmental management, including the following books: Municipalities and Environment in Colombia, Business and Environmental Protection in Colombia, The Colombian Road to Environmental Protection, and Environmental Care at Home. He is interested in fostering biodiversity at universities and facilitating its protection at local and regional levels.
- Pennsylvania, United States:
Julie Ellis, adjunct associate professor of pathobiology, PennVet
Julie C. Ellis has a Master’s Degree in Systematics and Ecology from the University of Kansas and a PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Brown University. With over 20 years of experience collaborating in and leading investigations in wildlife ecology and health, Ellis initiated and co-directs the Wildlife Futures Program at the School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania (Penn Vet). Launched in 2019, the Wildlife Futures Program is a novel partnership between Penn Vet and the Pennsylvania Game Commission aimed at strengthening the resilience of Pennsylvania’s 480 species of wild birds and mammals. Outside of work, Ellis enjoys hiking, gardening for native pollinators, reading fantasy fiction series, and spending time with her spouse and two children.
- Philadelphia, PA:
Keith Russell, Audubon Pennsylvania, Program Manager for Urban Conservation
Based in Philadelphia, Keith works on a variety of bird conservation issues including bird collisions with man-made structures, birds and nocturnal lights, non-native plants, and migration stopover habitat. His work has used education, monitoring, research, advocacy, and habitat restoration to improve conditions for birds in ways that have also broadened engagement in the environmental movement. Previously he worked as a Program Assistant for National Audubon's Important Bird Area Program (2003-2005), Assistant Editor for the landmark publication The Birds of North America (1992-2003), and Collections Manager for the Exhibits Department of the Academy of Natural Science of Drexel University (1982-1992). He is also a research associate of the Academy of Natural Sciences and he has received a number of awards, including the 2016 American Birding Association's Ludlow Griscom Award for Outstanding Contributions to Regional Ornithology.