Writing

My reporting puts people, communities and their experiences first.

I seek out stories about environment or human rights issues, and where they intertwine, and try to put the people and communities most affected by these issues at the heart of the story.

In 2021, I received a grant from the local TOA-GK (Todos los Ojos en la Amazonia) for In-depth Journalism in the Amazon, and in 2018 was a recipient of the Casa Socio-Environmental Fund for environmental reporting.

Some select publications:

  • What would you do if you had “nature’s pharmacy” in your backyard? (Mongabay)

    What would you do if you had “nature’s pharmacy” in your backyard? (Mongabay)

    TAMIA YURA, ECUADOR – Benjamin Mamallacta Alvarado and his wife Dalia Tapuy were both recently sick, but instead of going to a pharmacy to pick up medication, they went into their backyard, which just happens to be in the Amazon rainforest. Born and raised in the Amazon, Alvarado has been using medicinal plants all his…

  • Amnesty: A Win for Colombia’s Peace Process? (The New Internationalist)

    QUITO, ECUADOR – Liliany Obiando is finally free – after nine years. For almost a decade, Colombian sociologist, human rights worker and former political prisoner Liliany Obando has been engaged in a long and complex battle with the Colombian state and judicial system. She was charged with ‘rebellion’ in 2008, but this March the state officially…

  • Democracy at your doorstep: The disabled’s big win (Zoomin TV)

    Democracy at your doorstep: The disabled’s big win (Zoomin TV)

    QUITO, ECUADOR – Ecuador’s 2017 Elections have elected their first President in a wheelchair. And it seems fitting in a country that has some progressive voting rights laws for the disabled.

  • Ecuadorians say Lenin Moreno’s Victory is a Win for Poor and Working People (The Real News)

    QUITO, ECUADOR – Ecuadorians elected a new President Sunday, voting to keep the current left-wing party of President Rafael Correa in power. Correa’s former Vice-President Lenin Moreno won the election with 51% of the vote over his opponent, Guillermo Lasso of the right-wing CREO Party, who finished with 49%. Hundreds of supporters gathered at the…

  • Colombia’s Cane Industry Efficient but Potentially Damaging (Mongabay)

    Colombia’s Cane Industry Efficient but Potentially Damaging (Mongabay)

    CALI, COLOMBIA – Colombia’s Pacific coast state of Valle del Cauca, home to at least 80 percent of the country’s booming sugar cane industry, continues to rebound after excessive and damaging rains in 2011-2012. In fact, recent USDA Foreign Agricultural Services report found that the country’s cane industry continues to reach “historical averages.” The rebound isn’t…