Colleen Kelley (R) and Jessica Schultz (L) pose at the Hitchcock Center wearing shirts brought back from the Centro Rescate Amazonico, in Iquitos, Peru, where one of our spring fellows works and where Jessica recently visited.
Colleen Kelley, our Education Director, and Jessica Schultz, our Communication & Living Building Coordinator, have both been accepted into the Environmental Sustainability for Latin American Professional Fellows Program. The Hitchcock Center hosted several fellows from Mexico, Peru and Uruguay through this program in 2015 and 2017. This program is facilitated by the Institute for Training and Development with the purpose to build networks of environmental and sustainability professionals in the Americas.
In exchange, Colleen and Jessica will be working with young leaders in these countries introducing them to our living building and sustainability curricula and learning from their own approaches to sustainability education. Colleen will be visiting Peru and Uruguay April 2-15, 2018 and Jessica will be visiting Mexico January 14-24, 2018. The travel expenses are being covered by a grant from the U.S. Department of State and their salaries will be covered by the Hitchcock Center.
Jessica (R) arrives at the Centro Rescate Amazónico, with Cristian (L).
Recently, Jessica, whose background also includes land and wildlife conservation, recently travelled to visit and volunteer with one of our past fellows, Cristian Vélez, in Iquitos, Peru at the Centro Rescate Amazónico. Included in her trip was the opportunity to observe a project of international conservation significance, the release of five rescued Amazonian Manatees in the Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve, a partnership between Centro Rescate Amazónico and the Dallas World Aquarium. The event was filmed by the BBC as part of an upcoming program to be released in 2019 called, The Earth from Space.
As a volunteer, Jessica was able to help feed a young Amazonian manatee.
Jessica shares that, “The opportunity provided me the chance to experience key moments of international wildlife conservation including: care for the manatees and their keystone role in the river ecosystem; work with local communities on successful wildlife management, use, and education; organizational partnerships; and challenges facing the region around use and exploitation of natural resources and wildlife.”
Colleen and Jessica are excited for the opportunity to expand their horizons and see how other cultures and organizations are working to achieve a healthier, more sustainable planet. They each will develop action items learned during their exchange to their jobs.
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Hitchcock Center for the Environment
at Hampshire College
845 West Street | Amherst MA 01002 | 413.256.6006 | 413.253.2809 fax
Wow — How terrific for you both!!
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Me encantaría hacer una iniciativa similar en Mexico