Dr. Ana Luiza Violato Espada, U.S. Forest Service International Programs , Brazil
🌿 Ana Luiza Violato Espada 🌿 is a dedicated Gender and Forest Governance Program Specialist, bringing extensive expertise in cross-institutional initiatives across the Pan-Amazon region and the United States. With a PhD in Forest Resources and Conservation from the University of Florida, Ana has delved deep into collaborative community timber management, analyzing power dynamics and women’s empowerment in the Brazilian Amazon. Her research, showcased in peer-reviewed articles, sheds light on decision-making processes and the role of women in timber management, emphasizing their evolution from assigned roles to strategic decision-makers. Ana’s professional journey includes roles at the U.S. Forest Service, Instituto de Conservação e Desenvolvimento Sustentável da Amazônia, and Instituto de Manejo e Certificação Florestal e Agrícola, among others. Passionate about community forestry, Ana has contributed significantly to the field through academic assistance, research grants, and awards. With a blend of academic rigor and practical experience, Ana is dedicated to promoting sustainable forest management and empowering communities in the Amazon and beyond. 🌳✨
Professional Profiles:
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EDUCATION
- 🎓 2021: PhD in Forest Resources and Conservation from the University of Florida (UF), School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences (FFGS), Gainesville, FL
- 📜 Certificates in Latin American Studies & Tropical Conservation and Development (TCD)
- 📚 Dissertation: Collaborative Community Timber Management: A Comparative Analysis of Actors’ Roles and Perceptions, Power Dynamics, and Women’s Empowerment in the Brazilian Amazon
- 👩🏫 Advisor: Dr. Karen Kainer
- 🎓 2015: MSc in Natural Resources Management and Local Development in the Brazilian Amazon from Federal University of Pará (UFPA), Núcleo de Meio Ambiente (NUMA), Belém, Pará, Brazil
- 📝 Thesis: Parceria Enquanto Dimensão da Governança Ambiental para o Manejo Florestal Comunitário na Amazônia: O Caso da Floresta Nacional do Tapajós
- 👩🏫 Advisor: Dr. Mario Vasconcellos Sobrinho; Co-Advisor: Dr. Gilberto Rocha
- 🎓 2009: BS in Forest Engineering from University of São Paulo (USP), Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil
- 📑 Conclusion work: Motivações e Estratégias de Pequenos Produtores para o Manejo Florestal: Realidades na BR-163 e BR-230, Estado do Pará
- 👩🏫 Advisor: Dr. Edson Vidal
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
- 🌳 2021-to-date: U.S. Forest Service – International Program in Brazil, Brasília, DF, Brazil; Gender and Forest Governance Program Specialist
- 🌿 2021: Instituto de Conservação e Desenvolvimento Sustentável da Amazônia (IDESAM), Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil; Socio-Environmental Consultant
- 🌱 2019: Instituto de Manejo e Certificação Florestal e Agrícola (IMAFLORA), Oriximiná, Pará, Brazil; Socio-Environmental Consultant
- 🌲 2018-2019: IMAFLORA, Pará and Rondônia, Brazil; FSC forest certification Auditor
- 🍃 2018: Detzel Consulting and ICMBio, Belém, Pará, Brazil; Socio-Environmental Consultant
- 🌾 2018: SOS Amazônia, Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil; Socio-Environmental Consultant
- 🌿 2013-2016: IFT, Belém, Pará, Brazil; Senior Program Manager
- 🌳 2009-2013: IFT, Belém, Pará, Brazil; Program Manager
ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE
- 📚 2016-2021: Graduate assistant; University of Florida
- 🗣 Communication strategies to TCD Program and GIA Project
- 🌳 Community Forest Management (CFM) and Global Forests classes
- 🔬 2009: Intern; “Floresta em Pé” (FEP) and “Floresta e Agricultura na Amazônia” (FLOAGRI); Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa)
- 🌍 2007-2008: College student and intern; Program CAPES-BRAFITEC – Brazil/France at École Nationale du Génie Rural, des Eaux et des Forêts (ENGREF/AgroParisTech)
ACADEMIC ASSISTANSHIPS AND FELLOWSHIPS
- 🎓 2020-2021: William C. and Bertha M. Cornett Fellowship, UF; $1,500
- 📚 2019-2020: TCD Program Graduate Assistantship, UF; Tuition fee
- 🌏 2018-2019: International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) Fellowship; $10,000
- 📖 2016-2019: FFGS Graduate Assistantship, UF; Tuition fee
- 📚 2016-2018: UF Grinter Fellowship, UF; $9,000
RESEARCH GRANTS, HONORS & AWARDS
- 🏆 2021: 4Minute FlashTalk at Women and Gender in Development Conference, VirginiaTech; $450
- 🌟 2020: Emerging Scholar Award, Association for Academic Women at UF; $1,000
- 🎉 2018: Rufford Small Grant for Nature Conservation; $6,000
- 🌱 UF Research Abroad for Doctoral Students; $2,000
- 🛠 Idea Wild, Small grant for equipment; $600
- 🔍 2017: TCD Field Research Grant; $2,000
- 💡 2016: TCD Schmink Innovation Award; $1,200
PEER-REVIEWED ARTICLES
- 📄 Espada, A.L.V; Kainer, K. (2024) Decision making processes and power dynamics in timber production co-management: A comparative analysis of seven Brazilian Amazonian community-based projects. Forest Policy and Economics 159 (2024) 103121
- 📝 Espada, A.L.V; Kainer, K. (2023) Women and timber management: From assigned cook to strategic decision-maker of community land use. Land Use Policy, v. 127, 106560
- 📘 Humphries, S.; Kainer, K.; Rodriguez-Ward, D.; Espada, A.L.V.; Holmes, T.; Blanco-Reyes, P.; Santos, J.; Ribeiro da Silva, M. (2022) Pathways to community timber production: A comparative analysis of two well-established community-based forest enterprises in Mexico and Brazil. In: Bulkan, J.; Palmer, J.; Larson; A.; Hobley, M. (Eds.), Handbook of Community Forestry. Routledge (in press).
- 📑 Espada, A.L.V.; Vasconcellos, M. (2019) Logging Community-Based Forests in the Amazon: An Analysis of External Influences, Multi-Partner Governance, and Resilience. Forests, v. 10, p. 461.
- 🌳 Espada, A.L.V.; Vasconcellos, M.; Rocha, G.; Vasconcellos, A.M. (2017). Manejo Florestal Comunitário em Parceria na Amazônia Brasileira: O Caso da Flona do
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