The Amazon Rainforest — vast, mysterious, and teeming with life — has long captured the imagination of explorers, scientists, and storytellers alike. Yet today, it stands at a crossroads, facing mounting threats from deforestation, climate change, and cultural erosion.
In this fascinating talk, scientist and author Rosa Vásquez Espinoza takes us on a deeply personal journey into the heart of the Amazon. Blending indigenous wisdom with cutting-edge science, she explores the rainforest not just as an ecosystem, but as a living, breathing entity — one that holds profound lessons for resilience, healing, and our connection to the natural world.
Drawing from her book Spirit of the Rainforest, Rosa shares intimate encounters with Amazonian communities, revealing how their ancestral knowledge offers a vital perspective in the face of environmental crises. She explores her own experiences navigating remote ecosystems, discovering biodiversity known to very few, and rekindling our innate sense of wonder and the spirit of exploration.
Rosa is being hosted by the Ecology, Conservation and Society and Centre for Global Development research groups within the Dept of Geography and Environmental Sciences, as part of research funded by NERC (Natural Environment Research Council)
About the Speaker
Rosa Vásquez Espinoza is a Peruvian scientist, conservationist, and National Geographic Explorer whose work bridges indigenous knowledge and modern science.
As the founder of Amazon Research Internacional, she leads efforts to protect biodiversity and empower Amazonian communities through science, conservation and community empowerment.
Her work has been featured in The New York Times, CBS News, BBC and National Geographic Magazine, and in 2024 she was selected as one of the "100 most influential women" by the BBC.
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Gallery North, Sandyford Building,
Northumbria University, Newcastle
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Clinical Skills Centre
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Lecture Theatre TBC
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