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Introducing Dr. Vasco Chavez-Molina

Dr. Vasco Chavez-Molina in his dissertation defense.

The 鶹Ƶ’s Department of Environmental Studies is thrilled to congratulate Dr. Vasco Chavez-Molina after successfully defending his dissertation this week!

Dr. Chavez-Molina’s upbringing in Perú deeply influenced his academic and professional path. Born and raised in one of the world’s most vibrant ecosystems,Dr. Chavez-Molinaunderstood the importance of conservation and sought to have experiences in higher education that would allow him to be a leader in that space.Dr. Chavez-Molinaearned a bachelor's degree in environmental science at the College of Holy Cross before making his way to Boulder.Dr. Chavez-Molinafirst joined us here at the University of Colorado as a student in our Masters of the Environment (MENV) Graduate Program. During his time in MENV,Dr. Chavez-Molinaworked with the Governor’s Climate and Forest Task Force where he developed investment strategies aimed at fostering sustainable agricultural supply chains in the Amazon rainforest. As a student in MENV, he also met Dr. Cassandra Brooks. After completing his master’s degree, he joined the as a full-time researcher, focusing on policy analysis and fisheries management in the Southern Ocean. This role eventually opened the door to his PhD studies, whereDr. Chavez-Molinastudied the intricate governance challenges involved in managing marine resources across local, regional, and international levels.

On Wednesday, Dr. Chavez-Molina defended his dissertation in a presentation titled “In search of solutions for international conservation: Analyzing the governance complexities of managing marine resources in areas beyond national jurisdiction”. The guiding questions: “How can we legally protect marine ecosystems in the areas beyond national jurisdiction? How can we manage natural resources across the fragmented frameworks that make up the high seas? And how can we better govern marine resources within this critical region?” were addressed in Dr. Chavez-Molina's work. Throughout the four-part presentation, Dr. Chavez-Molina shared information about the nuances of agency oversight at the international, regional, and national level; the actors and institutions at play in this area of natural resources conservation and management; and the ways in which global politics and policy play a crucial role in accomplishing this important work and recommendations for the future.

If you are interested in reading more from Dr. Chavez-Molina's portfolio of published works, click the links below:

  1. Chavez-Molina, V., Wagner, D., Nocito, E. S., Benedum, M., Gaymer, C. F., Currie, D., Beam, E. G., & Brooks, C. M. (2023b). . Marine Policy, 152(March), 105594.

  1. Chavez-Molina, V., Becker, S. L., Carr, E., Cavanagh, R. D., Dorman, D., Nocito, E., Sylvester, Z., Wallace, B., White, C., & Brooks, C. M. (2023a). . Ocean and Coastal Management, 239 (March), 106580.

  1. Brooks, C.M., D.G. Ainley, J. Jacquet, S.L. Chown, L.R. Pertierra, E. Francis, A. Rogers, Chavez-Molina, V., L. Teh, U.R. Sumaila. (2022). . Science, 378: 477-479.

  1. Kiffner, C., Baylis, J., Beckwith, C., Brunner, C., Burns, C., Chavez-Molina, V., Cotton, S., Glazik L., Loftis, E., Morgan, M., O’Neill, C., Theisinger, O., Kioko, J. & Kissui B. (2020) . Ecology and Evolution 10: 10000-10016,

We are thrilled to congratulate Dr. Chavez-Molina on his great work and successful defense! Way to go!

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