the team

Daniel Shemie leads The Nature Conservancy’s Resilient Watersheds strategy which helps cities and communities protect their water sources. In this role, he partners with governments, corporations and impact investors to accelerate the inclusion of nature-based solutions in water sector spending. Before joining the Conservancy, Daniel was a partner at mWater, a mobile water monitoring company, and worked previously at the World Bank on water and sanitations projects in China and sub-Saharan Africa. Daniel holds a M.Sc. in water science and management from the University of Oxford and is a faculty advisor at Columbia University’s School of International and Publica Affairs. He currently lives in New York.

Brooke Atwell is the Associated Director for The Nature Conservancy’s Resilient Watersheds strategy, where she works to conserve watersheds around the world by developing sustainable watershed investment programs that meet the needs of biodiversity and communities. Brooke develops and executes a global strategy to mainstream nature-based solutions in the climate and water sectors and manages the strategy’s portfolio of flagship programs. She has a strong background in collaborative strategic planning, program management, economic and financial analyses for NbS, strategic communications, and operational and relationship management in cross-cultural, multidisciplinary settings. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in environmental sciences from the University of Virginia.

Naabia Ofosu-Amaah is Senior Corporate Engagement Advisor, Water and Resilience at TNC, based in Arlington, VA. Naabia focuses on developing and implementing the strategy for engaging companies and development finance institutions to further TNC’s global freshwater goals. Naabia joined TNC in January 2017 after seven years at the Global Environment & Technology Foundation (GETF) also in Arlington, VA. At GETF, Naabia managed The Coca-Cola Company’s $65 million Replenish Africa Initiative and other programs. Ms. Ofosu-Amaah holds a Master of Philosophy in Environment, Society and Development from the University of Cambridge and a Bachelor’s degree with honors from Harvard University in Environmental Science and Public Policy.

Andrea Erickson-Quiroz serves as Global Director for Water Security at The Nature Conservancy. She leads our team working to identify, test and deploy innovative, large-scale strategies that demonstrate how investments in nature will enable us to improve water security. Andrea is co-author of Beyond the Source, TNC’s flagship report on nature-based solutions for water security. She serves on advisory councils such as the CEO Water Resilience Coalition and ABInBev’s Environmental Council. Andrea has 25 years of experience in the design, management, and leadership of conservation programs in the United States and Latin America. She completed her BS at Cornell University and has an MPhil from the University of Cambridge in Environmental Policy and Economic Development. 

Michael sits on The Nature Conservancy’s Global Strategic Communications team where he leads the communications efforts of the Resilient Watersheds Strategy. Michael works in partnership with the Strategy team to develop and execute strategic communications plans that advance and elevate TNC’s work to develop watershed investment programs around the world. He graduated from the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a degree in Journalism and Political Science.

Nathan is a freshwater scientist on The Nature Conservancy’s Water Security team, providing technical and programmatic support for the Conservancy’s efforts to protect and restore freshwater ecosystems. Since joining TNC in 2013, he has helped lead efforts to strengthen monitoring and evaluation of watershed projects by directly supporting various stakeholders including NGO, government, and corporate partners across North America, Latin America, Africa, and Europe. Nathan also conducts geospatial analyses to support strategic planning and prioritization for watershed protection investments and supports research and conservation planning for community-based conservation of freshwater resources.

 Nathan earned a Master of Environmental Management (M.E.M.) from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and a B.S. in Biology from the College of Santa Fe.

Nancy is the Program Coordinator for the Resilient Watershed's strategy.  In this role she works with teams all over the world to support and strengthen the flow of information and to encourage collaboration across the strategy. As a team builder and a problem solver, Nancy enjoys the complexity of this work and the team's eagerness to deliver conservation outcomes in an equitable way.  

Nancy holds a Masters in Natural Resources from Virginia Tech.  She has worked in the water industry and the outdoor industry as a facilitator, educator, coordinator, and guide in just a few of our worlds most beautiful places, and now includes "conservator" to this list of achievements with The Nature Conservancy.

Michael engages with TNC’s corporate partners around source water protection in key geographies, advises companies on their water sustainability strategy and helps refine TNC’s corporate strategy. Michael worked at the US Department of State in the Regional Environment, Science, Technology, and Health Hub at the US Embassy in San Jose, Costa Rica, has consulted for Swiss Re, and has worked at the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and in the US House of Representatives. Michael is an alumnus of AmeriCorps NCCC.  Michael holds bachelor’s degrees in Political Science and International Affairs from The University of California, Davis and holds a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins.

Florence Mugi is the Resilient Watersheds Network Coordinator for The Nature Conservancy’s Resilient Watersheds Program, based in Kenya. DUring her start at TNC, she helped to develop and grow the Water Funds for Africa Network connecting water partners and communities across Africa and building capacity development programs for the Resilient Watersheds Strategy in Africa. In 2024 Florence led the rebranding process of the Waterfunds network and toolbox into the Resilient Watershed Network  which is where you can find all of the strategy's materials and tools (and more). Florence serves as a steering committee member for the Eldoret-Iten Water Fund and the Water Funds for Africa Network. She holds a Master’s in Business Administration, a Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture, and is currently enrolled for a Master of Arts in Project Planning and Management at the University of Nairobi.

Naomi is a Senior Partnership Associate for Water and Resilience in The Nature Conservancy’s Corporate Engagement team, based in London UK. She facilitates collaboration with Development Finance Institutions, Water Utilities and other stakeholders in the water sector, to support the mainstreaming of Nature-based Solutions into their operations and their investments. 

Naomi joined TNC in 2022, after 15 years at the French Development Agency (AFD) where she worked as a Task Team Leader for a portfolio of projects (up to 300 MEUR) in the sector of agriculture, rural development and biodiversity in Africa, South-East Asia and Latin America, in Paris HQ and in Bangkok regional office. Naomi holds two Master’s Degree in Agronomy and Agricultural Economics from AGROPARISTECH (Paris Institute for Technology for Life, Food and Environment Sciences).

Justus serves as TNC’s program lead to the Nature for Water. He began his TNC career as a deal lead in its impact investment unit, NatureVest, where he was responsible for developing and structuring transactions in new product areas. Following this, he served as a conservation finance lead to the Resilient Watersheds Strategy with a focus on driving sources of long-term sustainable funding into sourcewater protection programs, including the network of 40+ water funds TNC is involved with. Prior to TNC Justus spent half a decade in the private finance sector, principally conducting private and public equity investing in the hedge fund space. Justus received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Toronto in economics and international relations.

Kari Vigerstol is the Director of Water Security Science and Innovation for TNC’s global water program, strategically strengthening and advancing science behind the Conservancy’s source water protection and water scarcity strategies. Over the last 20 years Kari has brought her technical skills and partnership building experience to dozens of watersheds around the world towards protecting water sources and improving water use and management. Kari’s experience includes community organizing around urban waterways, leading water resource engineering assessments, design and project management and corporate water stewardship work. She has worked to advance collective action in critical basins around the world through integrated water resource management, agricultural best management practices and development of sustainable funding mechanisms.  She co-led the establishment of the California Water Action Collaboration (CWAC) and is a core team member for the development of the Science Based Targets for Freshwater and Benefit Accounting for Nature Based Solutions for Watersheds. Kari is a licensed Professional Engineer and holds a B.S. and an M.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Rice University and the University of Washington.

Colin leads TNC’s Africa freshwater program development which includes TNC’s Africa Source Water Protection Strategy and other conservation and sustainable development programs in Gabon’s Ogooué River Basin, Lake Tanganyika, and the Okavango Basin. He helped develop the Upper Tana-Nairobi Water Fund which has received global attention for its public-private partnership approach to improve water security. His team now works with partners to support Water Fund expansion across Africa including Cape Town and Freetown. Colin’s first decade with the Conservancy was focused in the Eastern United States on balancing human water use and environmental water needs at state and river basin scales. Colin received a B.A. from Duke University and a master’s degree in environmental management focused on aquatic ecology from Yale University.

Samuel Barrêto has 28 years of experience in the environmental sector and joined The Nature Conservancy-Brazil in March 2014. In less than one year he was promoted to Water Program Manager to scale the country’s strategy with the Green-Blue Water Coalition. Samuel manages a portfolio of five watershed investment programs which employ a diverse array of solutions to address local water security challenges. Samuel is a member of The Latin American Water Funds Partnership, Brazil Section of World Water Forum, the Water Governance Observatory (OGA) Steering Committee, the UN Global Compact Brazil’s Water Working Group and contributor to  Um Só Planeta (One Planet).

Silvia has worked in conservation for over 20 years, specializing in water issues related to biodiversity conservation, conservation planning, nature-based solutions and collective action. Over the last decade she has worked in support of Water Funds in Latin America. She has experience working in collaborative partnerships with a variety of stakeholders, including local communities, governments, national and international organizations, the private sector and academia. Silvia holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental sciences, from Universidad San Francisco de Quito, and master’s degree in Environmental Management from Yale University. She participates in several groups that promote gender equity, diversity and inclusion.

Rich Biske is the Director of Water and Land Protection  for The Nature Conservancy in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. Rich leads the Conservancy’s freshwater policy development, conservation strategy, watershed protection and builds capacity of partner organizations. Biske collaborates with public and private sector leaders to advance freshwater protection for people and nature. He leads a team of talented scientists, regional program managers and project managers that implement conservation action throughout the 3-state chapter. Rich also leads the Chapter’s Providing Food and Water Strategy and Mississippi Headwaters Fund. In 2021 Governor Walz appointed Rich to the Clean Water Council directing the use Clean Water Funds and development of Minnesota water policy.

Rob Cunningham is TNC’s Resilient Watershed Programme Director for Europe, a role that involves developing programmes that deliver nature-based solutions (NBS) at scale to address water-security issues faced by utilities, businesses and communities. His time is split between delivering TNCs priority projects in Norfolk (England) and developing new partnerships in Europe.

Rob studied environmental science, and his career has focused on the practice, policy and economics of water quality and water resource management in the UK and Europe. Prior to joining TNC, he worked for NGOs, regulators and utilities—always championing investment in nature-based solutions and conservation initiatives for the benefit of people and biodiversity.

Cristina started her career as a volunteer for The Nature Conservancy in 2010, where she has been working in an official capacity for almost six years—excluding a small break period to be a mom. Today, Cristina leads the Ecuador Watershed Program, leveraging public and private funds to execute nature-based solutions projects to achieve water security. Her portfolio of conservation work employs the pillars of integrated water resources management, and multi-sector collaboration to achieve biodiversity, human development, and climate goals. Cristina holds a BSc in Biology from San Francisco University of Quito and a MSc in Sustainable Management from the University of Wisconsin.

Carlos is based in Santo Domingo where he leads TNC´s Program in the Dominican Republic, and sits on the board of the Yaque del Norte Water Fund. Carlos joined TNC in June 2016, where he manages the Dominican Republic’s replenishment projects supported by Coca Cola and PepsiCo, and raises the visibility of the country’s diverse conservation portfolio. Prior to joining TNC, Carlos spent six years at the National Environmental Trust Fund of the Dominican Republic. Mr. Garcia holds a Master of Science in Management of Alternative Energies from the University of Cadiz, Spain and a Bachelor's degree with honors from Pedro Henriquez Ureña National University in Agriculture Engineering.

Fred leads TNC Resilient Watersheds strategy in Africa which aims to scale watershed conservation across the continent to achieve water security, biodiversity, human development and climate outcomes. He has been working in nature and water conservation in Africa for more than 25 years, and holds vast knowledge building public-private partnerships. He worked previously for UNDP-Kenya in the Energy and Environment Unit, the Government of Kenya, and was the founder of Africa’s first water fund, the Upper Tana-Nairobi Water Fund, which is now an independent charitable trust. Fred has a BSc in agricultural engineering and completed a MSc in Soil and Water Engineering at the University of Nairobi. He currently serves as TNC’s Elected Governor (alternate) for the World Water Council through 2022, and in 2019 he received the Robert W. Wilson Fellowship at Harvard Business School.

Galo is an Ecuadorian with a degree in Biological Sciences from the Catholic University of Ecuador and a MSc in Forest Resources and Conservation from the University of Florida (Gainesville). Since 1996, he has worked in Ecuador’s vital and unique páramo ecosystem. He began his career as part of the NGO EcoCiencia, before becoming the Regional Director of ECOBONA Program, an Andean initiative of the Swiss Cooperation in Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru. He joined TNC in February 2012 and he is responsible for conserving Ecuador’s incredible biodiversity through policy and advocacy at the local, national, and Andean level.

Carlos is a Civil Engineer with a Masters in Hydraulic Resources. He leverages his extensive knowledge of hydrological and hydraulic mathematical modeling to develop successful nature-based solutions programs in Colombia that sustainably manage water resources for the benefit of people and nature. He specializes in providing thoughtful consultation for projects related to the analysis of hydrographic basins, hydraulic studies of rivers, management of geographic information systems, and generation of software and applications that analyze and compile large quantities of information. In 2021, Carlos co-led the development of the WaterProof tool, a customizable return on investment application that integrates InVEST and RIOS models.

Ryan Smith has over twenty years of professional experience in freshwater conservation. Ryan leads The Nature Conservancy of Texas’ water program and science team. The water program implements statewide freshwater conservation strategies in the areas of market-based solutions, groundwater/surface water science, water management and policy, and watershed conservation. Ryan is also TNC’s Texas lead on the Sustainable Rivers Program, a partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers modifying dam operations to improve downstream ecosystems. He has also directed placed-based applied freshwater conservation science work at TNC preserves and watershed projects across Texas.

Louise joined The Nature Conservancy in January 2017 as Source Water Protection Director, South Africa. Her role includes the development of partnerships, provision of strategic leadership and support for TNC’s Programs in South Africa. She is passionate about working with others to find innovative solutions for restoring and protecting nature. Louise has over 20 years’ experience in invasive species management. She established a monitoring and evaluation program for CapeNature and assisted protected area managers with developing systems for planning, tracking and reporting progress. She graduated with an MSc (Entomology) from Rhodes University, Grahamstown.

Graduated from Universidad Nacional de Colombia with a degree in economics and earned a MSc degree in Geography and Urban Development from Université de Paris III, Sorbonne, France. His main research domain included public private partnerships and regulation for water supply service management.

Alejandro joined The Nature Conservancy as the Watershed Specialist and Water Funds Strategy Coordinator for Colombia, Peru and Ecuador in 2007. He works on the creation of financial sustainability tools for supporting conservation activities in priority watersheds. To do so, it is important to promote the use of institutional, technical, financial and planning tools for the creation and strengthening of financial mechanisms in order to recognize the provision of ecosystems services at the watersheds scale and secure reinvestments in conservation.

Since 2018 Alejandro is working with Latin American region as water funds Senior expert. He lead the Water Funds Accelerator initiative and now is currently leading the training and capacity building strategy in this region. 

Prior to TNC, he worked in the identification, design and implementation of Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects. Between 2004 and 2006 he was the Executive Director Corporation for the sustainable management of forest “MASBOSQUES”, Colombia in which he worked on the design and implementation of financial analysis supporting CERs purchase agreement with BioCarbon Fund from World Bank, and complete documentation needed for negotiation.