Marcela Beltrán

Marcela Beltrán is a Postdoctoral Fellow of the Multifunctional Landscapes Research Area at the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT. She obtained her MSc in Biological Sciences from the Universidad de Los Andes Colombia studying the ecological consequences of natural ecotones on ant communities in the Orinoquia region. Marcela has a PhD in Agroecology from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and is interested in the effects of climate change on rural communities, traditional knowledge to cope with climate change, and conservation biology. Marcela employs participatory research methods to define, implement and monitor climate change adaptation strategies that promote the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem services, while enhancing the livelihoods of rural communities. Her research experience includes working with farmers in the east Andes, central Andes, and Andean-Amazon foothills across Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. Marcela also led the work package 5 on understanding and influencing behavioral change in the CGIAR’s Agroecology Initiative for Peru. Moreover, she is the Leader of the REXUS project funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 programme which focuses on managing resilient nexus systems through participatory systems dynamics modelling in Colombia.