Ana Watson

Ana Watson is a PhD candidate in Geography at the University of Calgary. She is part of the Environmental Policy & Governance research group wherein she focuses on the human dimensions of environmental conservation in Liquified Natural Gas extraction projects in Latin America. She holds a MA degree in Environment and Development from the Pontifical University of Peru, and BSc in Life Science. Her background includes more than 8 years in pastoralism and grassland ecology projects; as well as biodiversity conservation action plans for energy extraction in the Amazon. As a multicultural female researcher, her interest is understanding the narratives and power dynamics behind accepted levels of socio-environmental impacts of hydrocarbon and transition minerals projects in Latin America that typically affects indigenous rights, and biodiversity conservation and climate change goals.

Ana's dissertation explores the ways in which the social constructions of environmental concerns and power relationships influence land use decision making and natural gas extraction in Camisea, Peru through the analysis of key historical discourses, social learning and environmental politics.

MA. Environmental Development
Pontifical Catholic University of Peru (Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú)

B.Sc. Life Science Engineering (Animal Science)
National Agrarian University La Molina, Peru (Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina)

International Forum Presentations:

• United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Business & Biodiversity Forum 2015, Finland. Invited speaker on “Biodiversity and Business: The View from the Oil Sector”. 

Interdisciplinary Working Group Covener and Participant:

• Rethinking Latin American Studies from the South (RLASS) - Calgary Institute for the Humanites. 
• Voice and Marginality at the Nexus of Racism and Colonialism - Calgary Institute for the Humanites

Organizing Event & Panel:

• Elected Program Committee Member: Sustainability Research & Innovation Congress 2022 (Pretoria, South Africa) A joint initiative of Future Earth and the Belmont Forum, the SRI Congress is a space of dedicated advocacy for sustainability scholarship and innovation, transdisciplinary and cross-sectoral collaboration and action. https://sri2022.org/
• Panel organizer: "Indigenous Self-Determination vis-à-vis Conservation and Climate Action".POLLEN2022 – Political Ecology: North, South and beyond (Online, South Africa)
• Panel organizer and panelist: 13th Canadian Science Policy Conference “Beyond boundaries: Building science diplomacy capacities and a transdisciplinary network of early career researchers across the Americas”. November 22-26, 2021
• Panel organizer and panelist: International Transdisciplinarity Conference 2021 organized by Akademien der wissenschaften schweiz, USYS TdLab, ETH zurich. Session: “Building transdisciplinary science-policy capacities and opportunities in Latin America and the Caribbean through an Inter-American fellowship program”. September 17th, 2021
• International Panel Organizer.  “COVID-19 and Indigenous Resistance: Territorial Pluralism and inequalities in Lithium extraction in Chile”. Panel accepted and to be presented at the 2021 Latin American Studies Association (LASA) Conference. Vancouver, May 2021.
• Organizing Committee Member. First Graduate-led Annual Rethinking Latin American Studies from the South (RLASS) Symposium - Calgary Institute for the Humanities. Calgary, February 2021.

Online Blog and Publications:

• Hubert Brychczyński, Marie Franquin, Bipin Kumar, Sumedha Sachar, Ana Watson & Nadine L. Wellington. " Training the next generation at science, society and policy interface." Institute for Science, Society and Policy - University of Ottawa. Here
• Watson, A; Delgado, D. Uma agenda ambiental para o Peru / Una agenda ambiental para el Perú / An environmental agenda for Peru. Latinoamérica21, also published in the newspapers: Tal Cual (Venezuela), Folha de Sao Paulo (Brazil), La Diaria (Uruguay), and El Universo (Ecuador) Here 
• Watson, A; Davidsen, C. “Conservation, Economic Reactivation and COVID-19 in Peruvian Amazon Indigenous Communities” International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)- Commission on Environmental, Economic and Social Policy News. Switzerland, June 2020. Here 
• Watson, A; Davidsen, C. “Covid-19 and Extraction Pressures in the Peruvian Amazon”. The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA) Report, June 2020. Here
• Watson, A; Davidsen, C. “Reactivación Económica y una Pandemia en Comunidades Indígenas Amazónicas Peruanas”. LAG-UK Latin America Geographies RGS-IBG working group (Royal Geographical Society). May 2020. Here

Volunteer:

• International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
• Women in Conservation  Latin America.
• Women in Energy Peru (WIN).
• Writing Symbols Lodge of the University of Calgary (Previously Native Centre).

• Science, Technology and Policy Fellow. Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research  - IAI.  (Apr. 2021 – Apr. 2022)
• Research Assistant. University of Calgary: International Project: Incorporating Local and Traditional Knowledge Systems: New Insights for Ecosystem Services and Transdisciplinary Collaborations. (Aug. 2019 – Present)
• International Development Graduate Intern. Alinea International. Canada (Jan. 2021 - May. 2021)
• Graduate Student Fellow in Residence. Latin American Research Centre at the University of Calgary. (Sept. 2019 – April 2020)
• Research Assistant. Institute for Peace and Development Ghana Extractive Industries Global Program Learning Question 1: What Conditions Stimulate Citizenship Engagement for Greater Accountability in Public Financial Resource Management? (Feb. 2019 – Jun. 2019)
• Biodiversity Analyst. Repsol Oil and Gas. Peru. (Nov. 2010- Jul. 2016)
• Academic Assistant and Co-Researcher. Institute for the Sciences of Nature, Territory and Renewable Energies - Pontifical Catholic University of Peru. (Jul. 2007- Nov. 2010)

• Courses