Meet the Team




 



 



 

 


 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 


 

 

 

Board of Directors

Anne Savage, Ph.D., President
As founder of Proyecto Titi, Dr. Savage is the co-founder of Fundación Proyecto Tití and the Executive Director of Proyecto Tití, Inc. the US 501c3 that works in partnership with Colombia’s non-profit Fundación Proyecto Tití.  She is the leading expert on cotton-top tamarins and has published numerous scientific and popular press articles on various conservation and scientific topics related to cotton-top tamarins. As chair of the Board of Directors, Dr. Savage shares her expertise and passion for conservation with this amazing team of dedicated board members and employees of Fundación Proyecto Tití.

Gustavo Bell

With degrees in law and history, Gustavo has held several public positions, most notably as the former vice president of the Republic of Colombia, former Colombia’s ambassador to Cuba, and former governor of the department of Atlántico.  Gustavo was also the editor-in-chief of El Heraldo, the most influential newspaper in the Caribbean region of Colombia. He has published several books and essays on the history of Cartagena de Indias and the Caribbean region of Colombia. Today, Gustavo divides his time between historical research and lecturing at universities worldwide. 

Reinaldo Niebles

Reinaldo is a psychologist and holds a Master’s in Education with emphasis in learning and cognition. He has more than 10 years of experience in the design and evaluation of informal education experiences and educational and natural heritage interpretation. He was the former Director of Education for the Barranquilla Zoo and developed many of their community education programs.  Reinaldo is currently the Deputy Director of Strategic Development for the Chamber of Commerce of Barranquilla and Professor of Thought and Language in the Department of Cognitive Studies at Universidad del Norte in Barranquilla.


Fundación Proyecto Tití Staff

Rosamira Guillen, Executive Director

Trained as an architect, with a master’s degree in landscape architecture and an advanced degree in environmental management, Rosamira began her career in conservation as the Director of the Barranquilla Zoo.  In 2004, she co-founded Fundación Proyecto Tití and leads the team in Colombia.  When not saving cotton-tops, you will find Rosamira listening to music, dancing or enjoying movies with her family.


Luis Soto, Conservation Biologist Emeritus
Soto, as we all know him, is one of the founding members of Proyecto Tití.  He has helped establish our field sites in Coloso and in Santa Catalina and has dedicated his life to studying cotton-top tamarins in the wild. With his long white hair, his distinctive hat, and his sense of humor, Soto has become an icon for Proyecto Tití in Colombia. When not in the forest, you will see Soto pouring through his collection of music. He is an avid music collector of all genres, but really loves Caribbean rhythms. 

Francy Forero, Deputy Director of Management
Francy joined Proyecto Tití in 2014, working as a field biologist in Santa Catalina; then in 2016 she was assigned as Coordinator of the Research Team in San Juan Nepomuceno and in 2018 she left the team to study in Brazil, where she did a master's degree in Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Development. In 2021 she returned to the team and since then she has supported the management of research permits, relations with environmental authorities and coordination of research teams. She is also working to start our research program in Colosó, Sucre. Francy is originally from Zipaquirá (Cundinamarca), she loves her work as much as cooking, running and meditating. She is a tireless traveler and what she enjoys most about traveling is taking photos and trying new foods.. 

Carolina García, Deputy Director of Research and Restoration
Carolina has a master’s degree in biological sciences and joined our team in 2018 to help create a new field site in San Juan.  She has spent the last year working to habituate groups of cotton-top tamarins to human observation and is helping to implement priority projects from our management plan.  Originally from Bogota, she is enjoying the warm weather of the Caribbean region and can be found playing the piano, teasing her cats, or spending hours working on cross stitch and new jewelry designs.



Mónica Pinillos,  Human Resources and Finance Coordinator

Mónica is a trained public accountant and manages the finances for Fundación Proyecto Tití . She joined our team in 2011 and leads all our administrative and accounting processes, tax and financial reporting requirements as deemed necessary by Colombian law, and also the health and safety policies and procedures for our staff. Mónica enjoys spending time with her family and her adorable little girls and squeezing in a game of volleyball when she can.  She has a special place in her heart for dogs and works to care for stray dogs in her neighborhood.


Carolina Chinchilla, Coordinator of Marketing / Communications
Carolina is public relations specialist.  Given her charisma and enthusiasm, Carolina works to engage various audiences with Proyecto Tití messages, activities, and products and leads our social media efforts. She also works with local artisans to produce products for sale as a source of income for communities that live near forests where cotton-tops are found. Carolina leads our efforts to market these products throughout Colombia in various local and nationwide events.  In her spare time, Carolina loves karaoke, creating new recipes for her family to enjoy and she loves to be the MC at any party!


Leysthen Díaz, Head of Social Programs
Leysthen is trained as a biologist with an advanced degree in statistical analysis, but is very passionate about working with local communities.  She joined Proyecto Tití in 2012 to teach in our community education programs.  Given her love and dedication to local communities she joined the community development team. She leads the team and is responsible for the design, implementation and evaluation strategies to engage local communities in conservation actions that benefit cotton-top tamarins and their forest home. Leysthen loves to travel with her family and enjoys watching documentaries.


Katherine Torregroza, Social Programs Coordinator
Katherine is biologist by training but with a passion for education.  She joined our team in 2011 to teach in our community education programs.  She currently leads the team of educators in San Juan who work with hundreds of school children each year.  Katherine’s passion for education and social programs has prompted her to pursue a master’s degree in Social Development. Katherine walks the talk when it comes to being a professional biologist committed to conserving the world’s natural resources.  You will see her with her family exploring nature, working to reduce her environmental footprint, and socializing with friends.  

Johana Pasión, Social Programs Coordinator
Johana joined Proyecto Tití as an intern in 2013 while attending school to obtain a technical degree in environmental control after completing her first technical degree in criminal investigation. She was such a star intern that we hired her to help teach in our community conservation education programs. Her passion for education grew as she worked with children and she is working to complete her bachelor´s degree in childhood education. Johana loves the outdoors and playing volleyball, and has a natural talent to train dogs that she shares in our AMIGUAU program.

 

Jaime Reyes, Coordinator of Forest Restoration
Jaime Reyes received his degree in applied biology from Universidad Militar Nueva Granada in Bogotá and has been working in the field of plant and animal ecology. He has joined the research and forest restoration team in San Juan Nepomuceno and is actively involved in field work.  Jaime has had a lifelong interest and curiosity in the natural world and he is committed to its protection.  In his free time, he likes to play musical instruments, paint, and play outdoor sports.

María Angélica González, Social Programs Coordinator

 When she was a child,  María Angélica participated in Proyecto Tití's education programs while living in Santa Catalina and it changed her life!  She fell in love with cotton-top tamarins and wanted to do something to help them survive.   Her passion and commitment to conservation led her to study biology, and her passion for nature and education motivated her to pursue an advanced degree in environmental education. María Angélica leads our various social programs in Colosó that work with local schools and community members to create awareness and inspire people to take action to protect cotton-top tamarins and the amazing biodiversity of Colombia's Caribbean region.  In her free time, María Angélica enjoys spending time with her cats, reading, dancing, and enjoying quality time with family and friends.


Angélica Herrera, Coordinator of Biological Research

 Angélica earned her degree in Biology at the Universidad Central de Bogotá. She has conducted studies on the illegal traffic of primates in Colombia, and has also conducted field surveys of various primate species in western Colombia. Given her interest in conservation, Angélica earned an advanced degree in sustainable development and environmental education.  She has joined Proyecto Tití to lead our field research efforts in Colosó  where she will be habituating groups for field study in the protected forests of the Coraza Forest Reserve. In her free time, Angélica enjoys working out and painting.

Meet the Teams

Social Programs Team

(Top Left to Right) Ana Utria, Leysthen Díaz, Ana Melendez, Darío Alarcon, María Gonzalez, Rosa Rodríguez, Johanna Pasión
(Bottom Left to Right) Julieth Ricardo, Katerin Torregroza, Yerley del Toro.

Forest Restoration and Research Team


(Top Left to Right) Aldair Luna, Germán Emeris, Felix Medina, Claribeth Montes, Jaime Montes, Luis Centena, Edwin Castro, Carlos Yepes, Laura Sierra.
(Bottom Left to Right) Luis Rodelo, Jesús Ballesteros, Jaime Reyes, Rodrigo Rodríguez, Carolina García, Luis González, Javier Vasquez.