Vania has a degree in Biology from the Universidad Nacional San Agustín Arequipa and is currently a Terrestrial Biodiversity Specialist at the Smithsonian Institute Center for Conservation and Sustainability. Over the past 10 years, Vania has gained extensive experience in managing biodiversity conservation projects. She is interested in spatial ecology, particularly in mammal movement patterns and understanding the associated conservation challenges. Currently, she leads two long-term projects, to mitigate the fragmentation of Amazonian forests and studying the mountain tapir in the páramos and montane forests. She is also an active member of the Women in Nature Network Peru (WiNN) and a founding partner of NODO Conservation, an NGO focused on wildlife conservation and encouraging the participation of women. Through this space, Vania seeks not only to generate scientific information but to develop effective solutions to real-world conservation problems.