The Willamette Laja Twinning Partnership is excited to expand its team! Get to know our new team members:
Grisel López
Sandra García Lona
Sandra will start with the Twinning Project in March as a Communications Intern. Growing up in Guanajuato, Mexico, Sandra spent a lot of time surrounded by nature. Following her love of the environment and passion for environmental conservation, Sandra is studying to be an Environmental Engineer at the University of Guanajuato and will be graduating shortly! As an intern with the Twinning Project, Sandra will be sharing watershed information with rural schools! In the long term, Sandra is interested in research on pollution control, natural resource management, and public awareness and engagement with environmental issues. She has worked with various science organizations in the past, including with the Conservation Corps Guanajuato, in which she used a drone to photograph and study soil rehabilitation and tree plantations. In her free time, Sandra enjoys creating music, painting and drawing. Sandra’s favorite birds are the barn owl for its mystery and the goldfinch for its unique song!
Grisel joined the team in January 2022 as a program instructor in the Laja Basin. As a program instructor, Grisel teaches third, fourth, and fifth-grade students in San Miguel de Allende under the Aves Compartidas program. She was born and raised in Mexico City and later moved with her family outside the city. Grisel is an experienced instructor, having worked with children for almost fifteen years, teaching in cultural centers and schools. In addition to teaching, Grisel is passionate about poetry and storytelling. The intertwinement of environmental education and bird conservation with her creativity makes Grisel the perfect instructor. In her free time, Grisel enjoys gardening and reading. Ever since she was a child, her favorite bird has always been a hummingbird.
Anna Nielsen
Anna joined the team in January and works remotely as a communications intern. As such, she is responsible for creating outreach materials and aiding in any other way that benefits the project. She grew up outside of Portland, Oregon, and later moved to Corvallis, Oregon for school. Anna is currently earning a Bachelor of Science, majoring in Biology and minoring in Spanish at Oregon State University. She is passionate about environmental conservation and research. Following her love of research, she has spent time studying Sea Star Wasting Syndrome on the Oregon Coast. In her free time, she loves hiking, traveling, and spending time outdoors. Some of her favorite birds include hummingbirds and the Bufflehead duck.
Employment Opportunity - Aves Compartidas Program Coordination
Our partnership offers a remote opportunity, beginning at 0.5 FTE (halftime) with prorated benefits. Our partnership intends to grow this position to full-time by 2023. Applications submissions are due March 20th.
Who We Are
The Willamette-Laja Twinning Partnership (WLTP) is a binational peer-to-peer learning experiment developed in 2015 to bring together conservational professionals, university students, and youth. We have resources to specifically expand our Aves Compartidas youth education program in the Willamette and Laja watersheds. With newly formed partnerships in the Portland-Metro area, we are planning cross-cultural exchanges for professionals, university students, and primary school teachers.
