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Sajjad Ahmad received a Master of Engineering degree (1996) from the Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand, and is now a Ph.D. candidate in Civil Engineering (Water Resources Development) at the University of Western Ontario, Canada. His dissertation involves the development of an intelligent decision support system for flood management in the Red River Basin in Canada. |
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Zita Botelho has a B.A. in Political Studies from Queen’s University, Canada. She is currently finishing a Master’s thesis at the University of Victoria in Interdisciplinary Studies. Zita’s thesis explores the importance of community involvement in decision making to achieve ecosystem-based governance. Zita also works for Environment Canada in Vancouver as a Community Outreach Program Advisor. |
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Debora Calheiros received an M.S. in Limnology/Ecotoxicoloy from the University of São Paulo (USP), Brazil. She is currently involved in doctoral research at USP studying the carbon flux in the aquatic food web in the Pantanal floodplain. Debora works for the Brazilian Agricultural Research Institute (EMBRAPA), and has been involved in ecological freshwater research on the Pantanal for over ten years. |
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Ignacio Cancino received a B.A. in Sociology from the Universidad Católica del Perú. He works at the Centro Peruano de Estudios Sociales (CEPES), where he is coordinating a project for small farmers in the coastal Huaral Valley of Perú. The project aims to improve the institutional management of organizations of users of irrigation water. |
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Felipe Cisneros received an M.S. in Applied Hydraulics from the Institutul de Constructii, Romania. He is a doctoral candidate at the K.U. Leuven, Belgium. Felipe teaches Hydraulics at the Universidad de Cuenca, Ecuador, where he also does research within a multidisciplinary project focused on water and soil management and conservation. |
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Pedro Fidelman has a B.S in Oceanography (Univ. of Rio Grande, Brazil) and an M.S. in Physical Geography from the University of São Paulo, Brazil. Pedro’s M.S. thesis focused on an environmental assessment of coastal mangroves in northeastern Brazil. In his doctoral work, he is expanding his previous work to explore how activities in upland watersheds may affect mangroves and coastal zones. |
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John Furlow received an M.A. in Law and Diplomacy from Tufts University, where he focused on International Environmental Policy. Currently he is a member of the global change assessment staff at the US Environmental Protection Agency. John is leading a study of the possible impacts of climate change on the ability of public water systems to supply safe, clean drinking water. |
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Mirella Gallardo Marticorena has an M.S. in Land and Water Resources Engineering from the University of Karlsruhe, Germany. She is a researcher at the Centro de Estudios de Zonas Aridas of the Universidad Agraria La Molina, Perú. Mirella is involved in the development of a project focused on water use conflicts (agricultural vs. urban uses) in the Cachi River basin. |
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Moises Pinto Gomes graduated from the University of Viçosa, Brazil, with an M.S. in Agricultural Engineering. Moises is affiliated with Brazil’s Agência Nacional de Águas (ANA), where he is coordinating a GEF project to formulate an integrated and sustainable plan for the management of the São Francisco Basin, which encompasses seven states in Brazil. He also assists the ANA Director for Brazil’s northeastern basins. |
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Sasha Gottlieb has M.A. degrees in Latin American Studies (Stanford University) and International Relations (Johns Hopkins University). Sasha is an environmental specialist at the Unit for Sustainable Development and Environment of the Organization of American States (OAS). She works with the OAS member countries to develop and implement environmental projects, specifically in the areas of water resources management and renewable energy.
[Participation supported by the Organization of American States] |
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Julián Gutiérrez has received degrees in Geography, Forestry, and an M.S. in Watershed Management from the Universidad de Los Andes, Venezuela. He is now completing an M.S. in Forest Management and beginning his Doctoral studies in Environmental Sensitivity Analysis under GIS. He is member of an interdisciplinary team at Univ. de los Andes investigating the importance of protected natural areas and their environmental services, particularly water supply. Julián has expertise in watershed management, GIS and remote sensing technologies. |
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Holly Hartmann has an M.S. in Water Resources Management from the University of Michigan, USA, and is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Arizona. She is involved in a highly interdisciplinary program to improve the ability of the Southwest United States to respond to climate events and changes. Her specific interests lie on the use of hydroclimatic models and forecasts to improve decision making. |
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María Alejandra Herrero received a B.S. in Agronomy from the University of Buenos Aires (UBA). She is a professor at the School of Veterinary Science of UBA, where she is doing research on the importance of water quality in animal husbandry in the Argentine Pampas. María Alejandra is also interested in the transfer of technology through agricultural high-schools and is involved in a water management project in a rural area. She is completing an M.S. in Policy and Management of Science and Technology at UBA. Her thesis deals with Science Policy in water as a complex problem in Argentina. |
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Sarah Hunt is a Ph.D. candidate in Anthropology at the University of Georgia, USA. Her doctoral work involves showing how beliefs about nature and models of human-environment interaction influence decision making and policy about environmental regulation. Sarah, an experienced teacher, also is completing an M.S. in Ecology, focused on the ecological functioning of constructed wetlands. |
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Andrés Iroumé graduated from the University of Edinburgh, UK, with an M.S. in Resource Management. Andrés is a professor at the Universidad Austral de Chile, where he teaches Forest Hydrology and Integrated Watershed Management. His research is focused on forest-water relationships and on mountain stream rehabilitation and control. |
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Roger Monte Domecq received a B.S. in Civil Engineering with specialization in Water Resources Planning from the Universidad de Nacional de Asunción (UNA), Paraguay. He teaches Hydrology and Hydraulic Structures at UNA and the Universidad Católica de Asunción. He has conducted research on hydroclimatology, including analyses of precipitation frequencies, severe storms, and zoning of areas flooded by the Paraguay River. |
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Leónidas Rivera received an M.S. in Hydrogeology from the University of Toledo, Ohio, USA. He is now a professor at the Civil Engineering School of the Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá, where he teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in Hydrogeology, and Watershed Management. His research involves land planning on two important watersheds in Panamá. |
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Ricardo Romero received an M.S. in Crop Production and Physiology from Iowa State University, USA. He is completing his dissertation at Iowa State on water use efficiency in irrigated maize in Uruguay. Ricardo is a senior researcher with the National Agricultural Research Institute of Uruguay (INIA), where he is contributing to develop an Information and Decision Support System to improve the sustainable use of natural resources, including the efficiency of water use, in the agricultural sector. |
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Anabel Sánchez received an M.S. in Environment and Integrated Development from the Instituto Politécnico Nacional, México. She is currently a research associate at the Third World Centre for Water Management, where she is working on water issues in the border region between Mexico and the United States. Anabel’s expertise includes water policies and international relations. |
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Dwight Smikle has an M.S. in Water Resources Surveys from the International Institute for Aerospace Survey and Earth Sciences, The Netherlands. Dwight works for the Water Resources Authority of Jamaica, where he is involved with two main projects: an assessment of water resources in the Rio Cobre Basin and the development of rural water supply through a variety of funding mechanisms. |
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Juan Manuel Torres-Rojo has a Ph.D. in Natural Resource Economics and Management from Oregon State University, USA. He is an associate professor at “Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas” in Mexico City. He teaches courses on Operations Research, Cost-Benefit Analysis and Natural resource Economics. His research on environmental and natural resource economics and risk analysis has a particular focus on forest resources (trees and wildlife). |
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Raquel Vanegas Sarmiento received a B.S. in Economics from the Universidad Externado, Colombia, and is completing a Master’s degree in Environment and Development at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia. Her thesis is based on a model of water resources sectoral demand in Colombia. Raquel is a researcher at Colombia’s Institute for Hydrology, Meteorology and Encironmental Studies (IDEAM). |
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Raquel Zabala received a B.A. in Political and Social Sciences from the Universidad de Cuyo, Argentina. She is now completing an M.S. in Public Administration at the University of Buenos Aires. Her thesis deals with international cooperation in water resources management. Raquel works for Argentina’s Undersecretariat for Water Resources, where she is involved in projects ranging from coordination of international collaboration to strengthening Argentina’s capacity to manage its water resources. |
