Brigitte Baptiste

Brigitte Baptiste (1963, Bogota, Colombia) is a scientist, an advocate of gender diversity and an inspiring public intellectual. She has been an important contributor to the concept of socio-ecosystems, which takes an integrated approach to nature and society, a concept successfully applied in protecting Colombia’s wetlands. She is director of the Alexander von Humboldt Biological Resources Research Institute and has been key in developing environmental policies for Colombia’s post-conflict areas. A charismatic speaker, a highly visible transgender woman and an LGBTQI activist, Baptiste has raised awareness that cultural diversity is part of nature’s diversity. She has been a professor of ecology at the Jesuit-run Javeriana University for more than 20 years. The author of 15 books, a popular TV series and regular newspaper columns as well as a presence on social media, Baptiste is an inspiring figure whose innovative research and alternative narratives have eroded prejudice, built bridges and generated social change.