Francisco von Hildebrand

Biography

Francis von Hildebrand is the Chief Executive Director of Gaia Amazonas (Fundación Gaia Amazonas), a Colombian NGO whose mission is to protect the Amazon, biocultural diversity and socio-environmental resilience while actively partnering and collaborating with indigenous peoples’ processes and organizations.

Francis has led Gaia Amazonas as its Director and CEO since 2012 and previously worked for a decade in the organization as a researcher advancing development and conservation projects in Amazonia with indigenous communities in Colombia and in transfrontier projects.

Francis is a professional in Development Studies and is an expert specialized in local development strategies,local governance, and in inter-cultural environmental management with a strong emphasis on community-based research and participation. He leads an inter-disciplinary team in Gaia Amazonas of more than 50 persons that has been instrumental in the official recognition of indigenous territorial titles in Amazonia by the Colombian government of what is the largest indigenous territory in the world (24 million hectares), and the team has also been leaders in the design, establishment and advancement of primary education, basic health services, and indigenous food systems with amerindian communities of the Colombian Amazon.