Born in Bogotá, Colombia, Juliana (She/Her/Ella) is a bilingual conservation social scientist with almost a decade of experience in program and grants management. She began her career with a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from Universidad de América, Colombia, where she developed her interest in Environmental sciences. Juliana completed her first MEng. in Environmental Management and Quality Assurance from EUDE Business School, Spain. Juliana embarked her American journey in Hawai’i, and after living there for two years she moved to Colorado and served as a STEM educator with AmeriCorps for four years in El Paso and Larimer Counties. This national service opportunity allowed her to develop a deep passion for community-based projects and led her to complete her second M.Sc. in Conservation leadership from Colorado State University (CSU).

In 2020 Juliana’s Op-Ed was published in a Colombian newspaper; here she wrote about the detrimental effects Colombian colloquialisms have towards Indigenous peoples as a result of colonial influences. In 2022 Juliana’s research collaboration work with invasive Lionfish in the Western Atlantic was published in the scientific journal “Diversity.” She is currently working on publishing her research, as first author, on the multilevel gendered challenges impacting women’s leadership in Latin American protected areas.

Before joining Hispanic Access Foundation team, Juliana worked at Conservation Legacy as a Grants Manager where she collaborated in providing oversight to 12 federal AmeriCorps grants; and served on the Community Navigator Program (CNP) Advisory Committee at Coalitions & Collaboratives (COCO). Over her career, she has collaborated to develop a situation assessment for Forest Health partnerships, to update Land Trust' strategic conservation plans, and perform conservation easement monitoring. Juliana has also a deep passion for water conservation and the interactions this resource has with women and youth specifically, which allowed her to direct a water project for mobile home parks with the Larimer County Environment and Health Department; and to co-organize a COVID-19 potable water relief fundraising event for the grassroots organization “Gorilla Guardians Village” in Rwanda.

Why she works for Hispanic Access…

"I joined Hispanic Access because aside from having a deep passion for conservation initiatives and community-based projects; I have witnessed throughout my work and experiences as a Colombian immigrant woman, the disparities that Latino communities face daily to access equitable opportunities not only for professional growth, but for access to basic needs like clean water, quality education, natural disaster relief, access to the outdoors, and much more. Hispanic Access is a place where I can exercise my commitment and responsibility to advocate for change and work collaboratively to elevate Latinos; and is also a place where I feel I can be my authentic self and share my cultural background without hesitation."

In her spare time…

“In my spare time you will find me in our front yard showing bugs, turtles, birds, tree seeds, etc., to our baby daughter. I love spending time outside with my family, which includes our 3 dogs, going camping, stand-up paddle boarding, and exploring the outdoors. I also enjoy scuba diving, watching birds, petting our cats, gardening, watching shark movies, and eating cheese, chips, and fruits!”

Her favorite book…

“I do not have a favorite book; I tend to read articles or books related to a specific topic of interest which varies from time to time. At the moment I have been interested in systems thinking in a conservation context. I do love listening to podcasts, my recent favorite is “Just the zoo of us”.”

A person she finds inspirational…

“Various individuals in my life and to whom I have crossed paths with inspire me. I find inspiration in my mom’s resiliency, in my grandmother's tenderness, in my husband's incredible understanding of the physical world, in my daughter’s giggles and insatiable curiosity, in my grandfather’s patience, in my best friends’ humor and creativity, in some of my colleagues outside the box way of thinking, and many more.”