Avecita Chicchón
Avecita leads the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation’s Andes-Amazon Initiative, which aims to secure the biodiversity and climatic function of the Amazon biome. Since the initiative began in 2001, it has helped conserve and improve management of over 170 million hectares in the Amazon, nearly one-third of the original forest cover. Avecita also led the team that developed the foundation’s forests and agricultural markets work.
Avecita has over 30 years of experience in natural resource use, biodiversity conservation and sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean. She currently serves on several committees and boards, including the Funders of the Amazon Basin, Strategic Steering Committee for the Andes Amazon Fund, the Amazon Biodiversity Center advisory board, and the program team for the Climate and Land Use Alliance. Before coming to Moore, Avecita served as the executive director of the Latin America program at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), where she led conservation programs in 15 countries.