Martha Rojas Urrego has more than 25 years’ experience working in conservation, sustainable development and social equity, gained in various senior levels of national government and international non-governmental organisations.
Before joining the RAMSAR Convention she worked at CARE International as Head of Global Advocacy and Acting Deputy Secretary General, where she led local to global policy work on poverty-fighting development and humanitarian aid with a strong focus on gender equality and women’s empowerment.
Between 1994 and 2008, Martha Rojas Urrego worked for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), first as a Senior Biodiversity Policy Advisor and then in 2002 as Head of Global Policy. In the latter position she coordinated IUCN’s global policy work, leading the Union’s engagement with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Prior to joining IUCN Martha Rojas Urrego was the Executive Director of National Parks of Colombia and represented the Government in several multilateral environmental agreements. She also worked for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and Fundacion Natura in Colombia.