Citali Cortes-Montano

Citlali is a second year Masters student at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. Prior to coming to Yale she worked in the Sierra de Manantlan Biosphere Reserve, a protected area in central-western Mexico, in a forestry-related development project. Most of her field experience is in forestry, forest ecology and conservation and, to a lesser extent, in community development. She chose to become a forester because she loves trees, forests and mountains, and because she wants to take an active part in the conservation of the vast natural heritage of her country.

This summer she went back to the Sierra de Manantlan to conduct research concerning the use of water that is produced in a forested watershed, and analyzing the financial alternatives that can be implemented to finance its conservation, as this watershed has very well preserved and rare forests of broadleaved species.

She strongly believes that conservation must be achieved by involving and convincing local people of the importance of their resources, and through collaborative work in the improvement of their natural resource management practices. She also thinks that working with people is one of the most challenging and rewarding tasks of conservation, and her studies at Yale allow her to explore the interface of ecological and social systems from different perspectives.