Yadira Ocoguaje
Director
Conservation Fellow Yadira Ocoguaje of the Siekopai Nation to our Board.
The Siekopai are an Indigenous Nation that lives along the Napo, Aguarico, and Putumayo river basins of the Amazon region shared between Ecuador and Peru. Over the years, they have faced many challenges, including mineral and oil and gas development, logging and territorial conflicts. In the face of these challenges, Yadira co-founded the Asociación Keñao, a women’s co-operative association. Through engagement across generations with the ancestral tradition of ceramics, Yadira seeks to address territorial protection, education, and community-based economic development.
Yadira’s work has earned recognition not only from national and international organizations but also from her own people in Ecuador and Peru. In 2024, Yadira was selected for Conservation International’s Amazonia Indigenous Womens’ Fellowship.
“As an Indigenous woman who has witnessed firsthand the social and environmental challenges affecting her Nation and who has worked closely with our team on the ground in Latin America in the implementation of our Connectivity model, Yadira’s voice and experience will be invaluable” - Hannah Stutzman, President