Carlos Andres Gallegos-Riofrío

Co-Coordinator Agroecology, Nature and Health, Institute for Agroecology, University of Vermont|

Carlos Andres is working with indigenous populations in Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia to understand the well-being and mental health effects of disconnecting from traditional agroecosystems and Mother Nature as seem from the ecocentric perspective of Andean cosmovision. Considering that outmigration, agrobusiness, and increasing ecological pressures are defining the demography and landscape of the Andean region, this research aims to bring a new understanding to connections between nature and mental health among populations that are typically overlooked by research focused in urban Western societies.

Carlos Andres has an interdisciplinary profile, with more than a decade of experience in fieldwork, research, and dissemination. He has worked in applied research with community leaders, governments, non-governmental organizations and in partnership with international organizations in Ecuador, Australia, and the U.S. He holds academic affiliations in the Institute for Research in Health and Nutrition at Universidad San Francisco de Quito, and the E3 Nutrition Lab in the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. He has published in various venues, including scientific journals and has coauthored a book, a book chapter and two social marketing manuals.