Pilar Valbuena holds a MSc in Forestry Engineering and has more than 18 years of experience in the field of forestry. In the last ten years she has specialized in knowledge management and communications. She works as an International Forest Communications consultant and event photographer for international entities such as FAO, CIFOR, GIZ, IUCN, UNDP, INIA (Spain), iuFOR (Spain), etc. Pilar supports its partners on communications strategy development and implementation and can address all communications dimensions related to an initiative or project. For example she has been working on the development of the communications strategy for the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol in Algeria in the framework of a UNDP/GEF project in partnership with the General Directorate of Forests of Algeria. She works on governance and landscape approaches, including in the context of Model Forests, from implementation to evaluation. She has participated on the development of several Model Forests in the Mediterranean Region and has been evaluator of forest initiatives in Europe and North Africa. She is conducting her PhD on forest governance and landscape level approaches in collaboration with the Instituto Universitario de Investigación en Gestión Forestal Sostenible (iuFOR) at the University of Valladolid.
Pilar speaks: Spanish (mother tongue), English, French.
Eva Lafont is an agronomist (AgroParisTech) specialized in the fields of environmental and biodiversity management, and holds a Master 2 in Environmental Economics and Sustainable Development (Master EEET, Paris Saclay University). After graduating, Eva quickly engaged in the development of strategic solutions and financing to combat climate change.
Indeed, as a Consultant in Adaptation to Climate Change as part of her end-of-study internship, she had the opportunity to accompany public and private actors at the different stages of their action in the field of climate policies and climate change adaptation strategies (diagnosis of the impacts of climate change, definition of strategies and action plans).
In addition, Eva contributed to the feasibility study of a national climate fund with Rio Impact, and she now supports more particularly the development of national financing strategies for forests, among other missions on financing mechanisms for nature-based solutions.
Eva speaks : French (mother tongue), English, Spanish