Mariana learned to see connections before she learned to name them. Growing up in Portugal, she spent childhood afternoons in botanical gardens and urban forests, watching how living systems sustain each other. Biology gave her the vocabulary for what she already understood: everything depends on everything else. Her career moved through animal behavior, conservation, and nature guiding before arriving at communications—work that taught her how stories shape action. In 2019, she co-founded Azimuth World Foundation with a conviction that Indigenous communities hold knowledge crucial for all our survival. As president, she has built partnerships based on trust rather than control, supporting community-led initiatives across health, water access, and territorial sovereignty. The foundation's approach reflects her understanding that authentic support means following Indigenous leadership, not directing it.

Carla has been with Azimuth since the beginning, trying to decode the space between intention and expression. With her linguistics background, she helps partners articulate visions that would otherwise get lost in grant language. Before Azimuth, she was a translator and teacher—work that taught her how communication succeeds when it bridges differences without erasing them. Her two children made her desire to actively contribute to a more equitable world even more urgent. When Azimuth moved away from traditional grant cycles toward relationship-centered funding, she helped reshape processes that put community knowledge and priorities at the center. She builds funding relationships that honor Indigenous self-determination, translating trust-based philanthropy into practice: flexible and catalytic support, honest dialogue and responsive timelines. This balance between structure and flexibility, accountability and trust, helps make possible the ethical partnerships that define Azimuth.

Francisco studied how messages move through culture before he learned how they might serve communities. His master's degree in Communication from Nova University gave him the tools to analyze media; his years in public relations taught him how to shape it. What these experiences couldn't teach was the patience required when communication becomes an act of justice. At Azimuth World Foundation, he crafts stories that don't begin with him. As Communications Manager, his days involve recording Indigenous leaders' perspectives, editing podcast episodes, managing social media that amplifies community voices, and building relationships with partners and allies who care about Human Rights. The work requires him to listen more than speak, to hold space rather than fill it. When communities wish to share their struggles and victories, he creates platforms where their words arrive unfiltered, carrying the full weight of their lived experience. He's been with Azimuth since the very beginning.

Jacque builds bridges where others see barriers. Over 15 years in program management and international development taught her that sustainable change happens when communities lead their own solutions. She has coordinated more than 60 small grant projects across Africa, each one strengthening Indigenous organizations' capacity to implement initiatives rooted in their own perspectives, traditions, and aspirations. Her expertise spans the practical and the strategic: cross-border collaborations that honor different legal systems, partnership development that creates genuine reciprocity, resource mobilization that flows toward community priorities. What drives this work isn't technique but conviction, her deep commitment to empowering communities to shape development on their own terms. Currently pursuing her undergraduate degree in Sustainable Development, she combines decades of field experience with advancing academic knowledge. This balance allows her to champion inclusive and equitable development across the continent ensuring that grassroots wisdom guides the process.

Gary Shaye has worked around the world, particularly in the Dominican Republic, Nepal, Bhutan, Bolivia, and Haiti. He brings extensive international experience in overseeing health and education development projects and humanitarian responses. For more than 45 years, he has held various roles at Save the Children. In Haiti, he served as Country Director following the devastating 2010 earthquake. In 2017 and 2018, he led responses to hurricanes Irma in Florida and Maria in Puerto Rico. In 2019, while in Colombia, he supported the response to the Venezuelan crisis. He currently serves as Senior Director at Save the Children. A founding member of Azimuth's Advisory Committee, Gary is fundamental not only in guiding our work, but as a living library of humanitarian knowledge with an extraordinary network of contacts. His dedicated involvement and constant encouragement make him the cornerstone of our Advisory Committee.

Aby Sène is a faculty member in Parks and Conservation Area Management at Clemson University, North Carolina. As an interdisciplinary researcher, Dr. Sène is dedicated to promoting socially and ecologically responsible methods of managing public lands, natural resources, and cultural heritage in both the US and Africa. Her research focuses on the intersection of parks and protected area governance, livelihoods, nature-based tourism, and the relationship between Race and Nature. Aby has worked closely with government agencies in the US and Africa, helping to create integrated management plans for critical conservation areas that address the relationship between biodiversity and socio-economic development. She has also written extensively on the colonial structures of power in conservation. Aby joined Azimuth in 2023. When our partner communities face conflicts with conservation projects, we turn to her advice: which laws to invoke, which provisions to question, which contacts to make. She was crucial in BIDO's case, when they challenged a World Bank and Ugandan Government project on Batwa ancestral lands - a case still ongoing.

Billi Jo is a Húŋkpapȟa/Iháŋktȟuŋwaŋ sovereign being of the Očhéthi Šakówiŋ of Standing Rock. She co-founded the nonprofit Oúŋ, a Lakȟóta term meaning "to live", to promote Indigenous Peoples' self-determination. Her love for her children and people motivates her to practice Mitákuye Oyásʼiŋ, the world view of interconnectedness, believing that restoring Indigenous Peoples inherent right to decision-making will collectively reconnect humanity towards honoring Uŋčí Makȟá, Grandmother Earth. Following the Supreme Court Decision to uphold North Dakota's new voter ID law, she organized with North Dakota Native Vote to mobilize communities on Standing Rock. She serves as president of the Bismarck Public Schools Indigenous Advisory Committee (second term), and on advisory committees for the Rockstad Foundation, NDkidscount, and the SB2304 Ad Hoc committee. Since 2021, she has served on Azimuth's Advisory Committee, providing crucial guidance on Indigenous self-determination and ensuring the foundation's work honors Indigenous leadership and ways of knowing.

Photographer Kiliii Yuyan tells the stories of lives bound to the land and sea. Informed by ancestry that is both Nanai/Hèzhé (East Asian Indigenous) and Chinese, he searches for human insight through different cultural perspectives. On assignment, he has survived a stalking polar bear, escaped pounding waves diving with sea otters, and found kinship at the edges of the world. Kiliii makes photographic stories for the pages of National Geographic Magazine, TIME, and other major publications. Since joining our Advisory Committee in 2023, his presence deeply honors us, as does the visibility his work brings to Indigenous-led conservation. It was through Fundación Sobrevivencia Cofán that we came together, bringing us Kiliii's sensitivity, profound knowledge of community realities, and extraordinary storytelling ability.

Rowan Martin is a biologist and conservationist with a passion for connecting people and nature to protect threatened ecosystems. He has a Ph.D. in the behavioral ecology of threatened parrots. He is currently the Director of the World Parrot Trust’s Africa Conservation Programme, where he oversees a diverse program of activities.
Rowan has worked in several countries in Africa and Latin America, conducting research and implementing conservation projects to protect threatened wildlife. He has published over 30 peer-reviewed publications. A member of our Advisory Committee since 2021, his deep understanding of conservation and the conflicts that can arise with communities, along with his sensitivity and thirst for knowledge about environmental protection approaches, are invaluable to our work.

Thea Bechshøft is a marine biologist with a Ph.D. in ecology and physiology. She has a strong background in environmental research, field work, science communication, and conservation, with extensive experience studying Arctic ecosystems and publishing peer-reviewed scientific papers. Currently, Thea works as a project leader in a Danish municipality, focusing on climate adaptation and resilience. Her work involves developing strategies to enhance regional climate resilience and collaborating with partners across Denmark and Europe to address shared environmental challenges. Since joining our Advisory Committee in 2021, Thea is a dedicated advocate for projects involving women and their empowerment. Her experience in conservation and understanding of the dynamics between environmental protection and local communities, combined with her constant pursuit of innovative solutions, significantly enrich our discussions and strategic guidance.