Introduce yourself

[farahanizayasn]

My name is Nasim and I am a Programme Officer at IUCN Academy.

I come from the academic world, where I also enjoyed being a teaching assistant.

Having longed for a new professional adventure, I have been working on designing and delivering educational programmes at IUCN for a year and a half now.

My primary objective is to ensure, together with my colleagues, that your learning experience is seamless and rewarding.

I am based at the IUCN Headquarters in Gland, a small town on the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland.

I look forward to assisting you on your learning journey and connecting with all of you.

A warm welcome,

Nasim

[Sera Samarna]

Hello, My name’s Sera and I am an enthusiastic citizen scientist from New Delhi, India.

Like Nasim, I also come from the academic world, with a little over 8 years of teaching experience in teaching English for professional purposes.

My motivation behind enrolling in this course is to learn to enhance my citizen science initiatives and look for actionable solutions to promote urban biodiversity in my city.

I also actively take part in many volunteering projects and citizen science initiatives in my city.

P.S. Birdwatching is my favourite hobby. In my free time, I love clicking pictures of biodiversity and posting them on my blog.

Looking forward to learn together,

Sera

• This reply was modified 1 month, 1 week ago by  Sera Samarna. Reason: spelling error

[Hannes]

Hello! My name is Hannes, and I am from Cape Town, South Africa. I am currently working as an independent project development specialist, focussing on developing climate change adaptation projects for funds such as GEF and GCF. My work is increasingly focussed on urban climate resilience, and the large funds such as GEF and GCF have been emphasising the need for robust monitoring of project results. For this reason, I am hoping this course will give me a new perspective on how monitoring and measuring of urban nature can be integrated into climate change adaptation and urban resilience projects, ultimately to improve their effectiveness in reducing climate vulnerability. I’m looking forward to the course!

[Claudia]

Hi, I’m Claudia and I’m an architect specialising in urban ecology and nature-based solutions, which is what I’m currently working on. I work for a small company that aims to promote NbS, both in rural and urban areas, so I’m willing to learn how to improve urban nature and biodiversity, how to enhance and implement urban renaturation projects and how to get the community on board.

I will be joining the course from a small village in Cáceres (Spain). Looking formward to the course!

[zarated]

Hello, I am Daniel from IUCN South America, Quito- Ecuador.

This course will allow me to learn new methods, specially measuring, which is essential for planning and providing solutions. I hope to gain knowledge that will contribute to a future project in Peru, leading by IUCN South America related to sustainable cities.

See you soon!

[sheena.khan]

Hi Team! My name is Sheena Khan. I head up environmental programs at Terra which part of and located in Expo City Dubai. One of the programs I run is called Nature in Cities (or as I prefer to think of it, cities in nature), which focuses on adding to the body of urban biodiversity knowledge specifically in the UAE which is arid. A few projects existing or underway in our gardens under the umbrella of urban biodiversity: native plants, pollinators, pygmy goats as a NbS, and urban nature therapy.

We are currently measuring (but not yet assessing) our flora and fauna by engaging our community through citizen science sessions and will be upping our game by adding earth observations analysis. From this course I’d like to learn the tools to follow the IUCN framework to apply it to Expo City Dubai.

Please feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn.

terra.expocitydubai.com

The World's Living Wonder in Expo City | Visit Terra

Visit Terra, the World's Living Wonder in Expo City Dubai. Understand humanity's impact and empower future generations to protect our planet.

[valerie.thoeni]

Hi Acadamy Team, hello everybody !

My name is Valérie and I am an independent project developer, as well as working for the Nature-based Solutions Management Hub in IUCN Headquarters on a temporary basis. I am very interested in urban NbS issues and cities’ adaption to climate change. I have a bit of urban knowledge background and green spaces calculation, from my Masters in Environmental Studies.

In parallel, I am very engaged in my Geneva municipality, Carouge (municipality candidate), where we have a big urban project planned. I am very happy to take this course, meet and collaborate with new people and learn more. See you soon !

[pablocu]

Hi Everyone,

My name is Pablo Castro, and I’m from Costa Rica. I serve as the Executive Director of the Fundación Centro para la Sostenibilidad Urbana (Center for Urban Sustainability Foundation).

Our work spans a wide range of areas, including climate action, sustainable mobility, and public space.

Although I’m an industrial engineer by training, that doesn’t really define me and I probably should have been a biologist, but here I am haha—I’m deeply passionate about biodiversity and ecosystems. Over the years, I have received training in various fields such as permaculture, herpetology, native bees, and arboriculture.

I oversee numerous projects where we strive—both directly and indirectly—to highlight the importance of biodiversity, ecosystem regeneration, nature based solutions and green connectivity.

Looking forward to connecting and collaborating!

• This reply was modified 4 weeks, 1 day ago by  pablocu.

[lopezguijosap]

Hello everyone,

My name is Pablo López, and I currently work as a Communications Officer at IUCN’s Regional Office for Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. I primarily support the Linking the Central American Landscape program, which is implemented across the region with funding from German cooperation through KfW.

In a previous role, I was UBHub’s Project Manager for the development of the Urban Nature Index (UNI). Now, as an IUCN staff member with different responsibilities and no longer directly involved in the urban agenda, I am eager to experience first-hand how UNI has evolved, how it is being applied in different countries and regions, and to explore potential synergies between my current position and UNI.

I am a biologist with a master’s degree in Environmental Management, and I have worked with UNEP, UNCBD, the Ramsar Convention Secretariat, as well as several local and national governments. Originally from Mexico City, I have also lived in Brisbane, Australia; Helsinki, Finland; Geneva, Switzerland; and I am currently based in San José, Costa Rica. I have been a member of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas since 2015.

[Maria Angelica]

¡Hola! Hello everyone, I am happy to be part of this community. My name is María Angélica Mejía, born and bred in Bogotá, Colombia – now based in Nairobi. I have what I call a bio-disperse profile 😉 I hold a double mayor in BA Political Science and Economics. Following one of my life passions I did a Minor in Architecture. In 2019 I earned my degree in MSc Global Ecological Change.

This course will provide practical experience on the data gaps that cities face when establishing their urban biodiversity baseline. What are the most difficult indicators to measure? What is still missing? What are the benefits of UNI based on the cities who are already implementing it? How can we move from the species level to the ecosystem service?

I also approach this course as a networking opportunity as I just re-based to Nairobi looking for new opportunities to grow my career. I’d love to connect with you via LinkedIn >> https://www.linkedin.com/in/okmejia/.

Let’s keep the conversation open!

• This reply was modified 3 weeks, 3 days ago by  Maria Angelica.

[Ettore]

Hello everyone,

It is a pleasure to meet you all.

My name is Ettore Massa. I am from Rome, Italy, but currently living in Copenhagen, Denmark, where I just graduated with an M.Sc. in Climate Change: Impacts, Adaptation, and Mitigation.

I hold a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Sciences, and I am passionate about urban climate adaptation, healthy cities, and urban resilient development. I am very interested in how to leverage NbS to achieve a resilient and healthy urban environment, and I am looking forward to understanding how the UNI could be used to achieve this goal.

I am looking forward to meeting all of you better and collaborating with you in this course and beyond.

Following up on Marìa’s example, I am also dropping here my LinkedIn profile’s link: http://www.linkedin.com/in/ettore-massa

I would be honored to connect with you all.

See you in the course!

Ettore Massa.

[Maria]

Hi everyone!

My name is Maria. I live and work in Warsaw, Poland. I am an environmental engineer with a focus on nature conservation. I have experience in active protection of rare and endangered species, and in the field of ecological education. For over 14 years I’ve been taking part in bat monitoring activities and in implementation of bat protection measures. In my currant job I am the environmental consultant / biodiversity specialist, and I support the environmental team in supervising the scope and quality of pro-environmental solutions proposed in EIA, EDD and ESG processes / projects, and in the implementation of environmental infrastructure, as well as green-blue solutions in the cities.

During the course I expect to gain knowledge that will allow me to calculate the value of urban biodiversity.

It is very nice to meet you all!