| Regional CoordinatorsGDF's regional coordinators are responsible for designing, implementing and overseeing community and conservation initiatives, applied research, training, and capacity building in their geographical focus areas. They build upon their established relationships with communities and local institutions, and specialist knowledge of the area, to implement long term collaborative projects in the name of the Foundation. With academic backgrounds in anthropology and ethnobiology, the regional coordinators promote an integrative approach to conservation and development. Their ongoing field experience allows the development and maintenance of partnerships and networks that strengthen the capacity of communities and local institutions to manage their resources in a sustainable and equitable way.
Hattie Wells - Southern Africa
Hattie Wells received a BSc degree in Social Anthropology at the London School of Economics in 1997 and an MSc in Ethnobotany with distinction at the University of Kent in Canterbury in 2005. Her dissertation and field research documented the ethnomedicinal knowledge among the !Xoon and 'N|ohan (San) in the Omaheke south, Namibia, and the impact of gender roles and relations on therapeutic learning and practices. She is interested in the relationship between biomedicine and traditional healthcare in the context of an HIV pandemic in southern Africa, the role of magic in medical belief systems and the gendered nature of ethnobotanical knowledge. In addition to her ethnomedical studies, Hattie is developing research and applied projects that address sustainable livelihood strategies and drylands biodiversity conservation in both Namibia and Botswana. Hattie has worked in Southern Africa and the Americas, speaks English and Spanish fluently and is currently learning Afrikaans and !Xoon.
Dr. Agnes Lee Agama, Project Coordinator
Agnes received a BA Honours degree with a double major in Social Psychology and Anthropology from the Australian National University in 1997, and finished her PhD in Environmental Anthropology at the University of Kent in Canterbury (United Kingdom) in 2004. Her field research, and continued research interests, focus on the social transformation of local communities who live along the periphery of Kinabalu Park, especially changes in indigenous plant knowledge and local attitudes towards plant conservation and community-based forest management. She served under WWF Malaysia from 1997 to 2003 as part of the People an Plants Initiative-Southeast Asia and the Community-based Conservation Project in Ulu Padas. She has experience working with various local communities in Sabah on community-based plant conservation issues, as well as with local government agencies on access and benefit sharing issues. She speaks English and Bahasa Malaysia fluently. Claudia Camacho - Regional Coordinator of GDF’s Mesoamerican Region
Claudia received a BSc degree in Biology at Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo León, Mexico in 2001 and an MSc in Ethnobotany at the University of Kent in Canterbury in 2003. Her dissertation and field research evaluated the contribution of home-gardens to the conservation of medicinal plants among the Quichua in Amazonian Ecuador. Her work experience includes evaluating and promoting urban and rural traditional medicine as well as medicinal plant diversity in northeastern Mexico. She is interested in using local plant diversity and traditional medicine to improve community nutrition and health care, and in promoting community capacities for natural resource conservation. Claudia has field experience in both northern and southern Mexico and speaks Spanish and English fluently. Carlos del Campo - Regional Coordinator of GDF’s Mesoamerican Region
Carlos received a BSc degree in Psychology at Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, México in 2001 and an MSc in Environmental Anthropology at the University of Kent in Canterbury in 2003. His dissertation and field research evaluated the impact of indigenous organizations on agricultural knowledge transmission in Pastaza, Amazonian Ecuador. He is interested in the benefits of eco-therapy for conservationist organizations, in developing web platforms for conservation and biocultural diversity-related NGOs, and in collaborating with rural communities to strengthen their technical and organizational capacities for conservation. Carlos has field experience in both northern and southern Mexico and speaks Spanish, French and English fluently.
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