Katia Vicente
Coordinator of methodology and research for the CEFO program
Katia, an Ecuadorian ethnomicologist and illustrator, received her academic and professional training in the Amazon Region of Ecuador. Her deep passion for the remarkable agrobiodiversity and traditional knowledge of the Amazonia has driven her to engage in various projects addressing these topics in the region. Her primary interest lies in contributing to food sovereignty and land management as essential pillars for promoting rural development and conservation in the region. With these goals in mind, she focuses on strengthening traditional food systems, such as chagras. Katia has conducted inventories of non-timber forest products, documented traditional knowledge associated with wild edible mushrooms, facilitated awareness workshops, and guided innovation processes to add value to local products of native species.
Throughout her career, she has collaborated with NGOs and consultancies like specialist in traditional food systems, ethnobotany, and ethnomycology. She played a key role in developing an initiative to promote sustainable production free of deforestation in the territory of four indigenous nationalities, aligning with REDD+ actions in Ecuador.
In her role as an illustrator, she established her brand, Endémica Amazónica, as a scientific dissemination project. Through collaboration with other artists and local stakeholders, she has created materials to preserve traditional knowledge and promote environmental education.
Katia is committed to continuing her work in the region, particularly with women and young people, to promote their knowledge, appreciation, and consumption of agrobiodiversity as a strategy for conservation and sustainable development.