Meet the Team

Hello. I'm Jeff Flocken, and I'll be one of the two field reporters for this trip. I'm very excited about this upcoming adventure for a number of reasons. As a CI employee, I'm looking forward to seeing up close Conservation International's work in the field. Additionally, I've never been to Brazil, even though I've been doing animal conservation work for eight years – and Brazil has the greatest variety of wildlife in the world!
Read Jeff's Biography

Hello. Julie Scardina here. A trip to the Pantanal, how cool is that?! Of course, being a career animal trainer up until several years ago, I hadn't been able to make many trips abroad for business, so I had never even heard of the Pantanal. Once I did however, my conservationist/biologist side took over, and I immediately wanted to visit this great wilderness area.
Read Julie's Biography

Julia Byrd
Title: Education Coordinator for CI's Washington DC Office
Education: Bachelor's degree from Wake Forest University, North Carolina
Role Content and Graphic Development

Erika Guimaraes
Title: Corridor Project Biologist for CI's Pantanal Office
Education: Bachelor's degree in Biology from Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul and Masters in Botany Science from University of Sao Paulo
Role: Host for Refugio da Ilha and Caiman Ecological Refuge

Patrick Johnston
Title: Managing Editor for CI's Washington DC Office
Education: Bachelor's degree from McGill University, Montreal
Role:Photographer and Recorder

Lysandre Ribeiro
Title: Corridor Project Communications for CI's Pantanal Office
Education: Bachelor's degree in Social Communications and Advertisement from University of Federal Fluminense, Rio de Janeiro
Role: Host for Refugio da Ilha and Caiman Ecological Refuge

Jhanina Santiago
Title: IT Web Development Intern
Education: Bachelor's degree in Computer Studies from University of Maryland expected '02
Role: Pantanal Web Site Developer

Mariza Silva
Title: Environmental Education Coordinator for CI's Pantanal Office
Education: Bachelor's degree in Biology, and Masters in Tourism and the Environment from Catholic University
Role: Brazil Coordinator for Expedition and Host for Fazenda Rio Negro