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:

  • Crabbers face danger and poverty to save Ecuador’s mangroves (Reuters)

    Crabbers face danger and poverty to save Ecuador’s mangroves (Reuters)

    MACHALA, Ecuador – The small motorboat left the dock at the end of Neiva Carrascal’s street and hummed out into the ocean off the southern coast of Ecuador, keeping close to the shore lined with tangled branches of mangroves. Every day, Carrascal and 80 others from her port community in the city of Machala go out to collect…

  • Indigenous Ecuadorans fight back as metal mining eats into Amazon (Reuters)

    Indigenous Ecuadorans fight back as metal mining eats into Amazon (Reuters)

    MAIKIUANTS, ECUADOR – The brightly colored chiva bus rocked back and forth, branches scraping across its sides, as it traveled down the narrow dirt road traversing mountain ranges of the Cordillera del Condor, in Ecuador’s southern Amazon. The region, which stretches about 150 km (93 miles) along the border with Peru, is famous for its…

  • Indigenous protesters are paralyzing Ecuador. Here’s why. (Washington Post)

    Indigenous protesters are paralyzing Ecuador. Here’s why. (Washington Post)

    QUITO, ECUADOR — The Indigenous protesters of Ecuador have been credited in the past with bringing the country to its knees — and chasing three presidents from office. Now, the South American country’s powerful Indigenous movement has taken to the streets again, spearheading 12 days of nationwide protests that have paralyzed the capital and tested…

  • ‘We can’t get by’: Indigenous people keep up protests in Ecuador (Al Jazeera)

    ‘We can’t get by’: Indigenous people keep up protests in Ecuador (Al Jazeera)

    QUITO, ECUADOR – Thousands of Indigenous people continue to demonstrate in the Ecuadorian capital, as their calls for social and economic reforms grow louder despite a crackdown by authorities in the South American nation. The protesters, predominantly led by the powerful Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) group, began blocking roads and marching in…

  • ‘Lost’ Amazonian cities hint at how to build urban landscapes without harming nature (Mongabay)

    It was over twenty years ago when locals in Bolivia’s northern plains told archaeologist Heiko Prümers, with the German Archaeological Institute in Bonn, about mysterious mounds of earth in the nearby Amazon that showed signs of a hidden El Dorado. Surrounded by trees and covered in vegetation, it was hard to see what the mounds…