LPO GRANDS CAUSSES - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Administrative Assistant
- Financial Manager
Natural from Porto, Portugal, 1979. BSc in Biology (Aveiro). Between 2003 and 2006 developed research and field work about birds of prey in Costa Rica and USA, and the impact of powerlines on bird populations. From 2007 to 2016, she worked at ATN, in Northeast Portugal, as a conservation manager, being in charge of projects, including LIFE projects. At VCF, she is responsible for the financial management and supporting the organization's administration. In her spare time, Alice has started a sustainable farming family project, and works as a farmer and manager, producing organic olive oil and almonds in the Northeast of Portugal, close to nesting habitat of Griffon and Egyptian Vultures.
Boris Barov holds a Master in Ecology (specialisation Human Resources, complemented by numerous professional training courses in NGO governance and management) and works as Coordinator of the Biodiversity Conservation Partnership of BirdLife Europe and HeidelbergCement. His position involves liaising among different management levels and grassroot structures of the BirdLife partnership of NGOs and the structures of this global company. Previously he has worked as European Conservation Manager for BirdLife (2007-2011), where he was responsible for the planning and implementation of the European conservation programme for species and site conservation. He has over 15 year of professional experience in nature conservation, 7 of which as executive director of the Bulgarian BirdLife Partner (2000-07).
Daniel Hegglin(Dr. sc. nat.) studied zoology and wildlife biology at the University of Zurich, Switzerland and did his PhD in Ecology and Epidemiology. He is executive director of the Swiss Foundation for the bearded vulture and executive board member of SWILD, an independent wildlife research and consulting institute. Additionally, he coordinates the monitoring of bearded vultures in Switzerland and is in charge of satellite tracking released juveniles.
Job Titles:
- Communications Specialist
Eleni Karatzia is a communications specialist who grew up in Cyprus and studied Marketing at Durham University in England. Her expertise consists of content creation, digital campaigns, and event organisation, having worked in England, Malta and Cyprus. Even though she was always fascinated by wildlife, she fell in love with birds after working for a year at BirdLife Malta. There, her main goal was to connect the public with nature, which she did through specific activities and targeted communication actions. At the VCF, she is responsible for creating engaging content, raising awareness about vulture conservation and the VCF, and coordinating events.
Born in 1938, Chemist, Wildlife Film maker. Since the 60's, responsible (with his brother Jean-François Terrasse) of the "Fonds d'Intervention pour les Rapaces", now Raptor Mission of the LPO (BirdLife France). Through different conservation actions (surveys of threatened nest, feeding, education, breeding in captivity etc…), the vulture conservation has been one of the more achieved work : The successful reintroductions of the Griffon vultures in the Causses (southern Massif Central) after 1981, and in the Mediterranean Alps ( 1995), the return of the Black vulture as a breeding species in France after 1992, the slow come back of the Egyptian vulture in most of the former breeding territories and the conservation of the Bearded vulture in the Pyrenees, in Corsica and now in the Alps, are among the main results of these 30 years of intensive conservation work.
Franziska Lörcher has her first encounter with Bearded Vultures already as a girl when the first three young vultures where released in Switzerland. After an apprenticeship as an optician and several years working she completed high-school and studied biology in Bern and Zurich in Switzerland. For her Masters' thesis she got back to the bearded vultures. She investigated the genetic diversity of the reintroduced Bearded Vulture population in the Alps. She works part time for the Swiss Foundation for the Conservation of the Bearded Vulture where she is responsible for the observation of the released young Bearded Vultures and other tasks. For VCF she is the scientific and conservation coordinator and works for example in three different LIFE projects for the monitoring, GPS marking and genetic analysis of vultures. For her it is very interesting to see how vulture conservationist work together throughout Europe and experience the development of the new foundation. In her spare time Franziska likes to be outdoors, for hiking, climbing, snowshoe walking, skitouring, and bird and other animal watching.
Born in 1954. Graduated in Agricultural Science. Since 1987, he has been freelancer in zoology conservation and wildlife management (as environmental consultant), with a particular interest in the biology, ecology and management of alpine birds and mammals. Fulvio Genero has been responsible, since 1988, for the technical and scientific aspects of the project for the conservation of the Griffon Vulture (Gyps fulvus) in the Italian Eastern Alps. Moreover, since 1986 he has been working within the international project for the reintroduction of the Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) in the Alps, with a initial role of coordination for the Italian side. He was also involved in various feasibility studies and projects for the reintroduction of different species of vultures in Sardinia, Alps and Apennines.
Hans Pohlmann (1977) studied Spatial Planning and worked at three different consultancy firms in the following 18 years. Currently, he works at Stichting Landschap Overijssel, a Dutch NGO, as Director of Conservation. In this role, he is responsible for the management of 64 different nature-reserves, of which 8 are classified as Natura 2000 sites. Within this position, relationship management, financial management and strategic development are the main tasks. He is an avid birder in his free time. Hans' first acquaintance with the VCF was when he returned a weakened Bearded Vulture back to the Alps. Since then, he has worked on several projects, while representing the VCF. He currently holds the position of President.
Born in 1946, Jesus Garzón has worked in nature conservation for more than 50 years, mainly on threatened species in Spain, such as Bear, Wolf, Iberian Lynx, Imperial Eagle, Cinereous Vulture, Black Stork, Capercaillie and Great Bustard, taking action to prevent their decline. From 1972 to 1984 he lead the IUCN/WWF International Project for the Conservation of Nature in Western Spain, which culminated in 1979 with the creation of the current Monfragüe National Park. He was Director General for Environment in Extremadura from 1984 to 1987, and co-founder of several conservation organizations, such as ADENEX (Extremadura), ARCA (Cantabria), the Black Vulture Conservation Foundation (BVCF) or the Spanish section of the European Nature Heritage Fund (EURONATUR). Since 1992 he chairs the Association Concejo de la Mesta, striving to recover traditional transhumant livestock walking throughout Spain to ensure the connectivity and sustainable conservation of ecosystems, allowing the adaptation and resilience of biodiversity to climate change.
José Pedro Tavares, a Portuguese national, is a biologist with a life-long vocation and action in the field of nature conservation. After doing his university in Lisbon, he went on to the UK to do a PhD on ornithology (the study of birds) . He then worked for the Portuguese Government National Park Service, and spent 12 years at the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), a UK charity, and the biggest nature conservation organization in Europe, and one of the biggest in the world. There he managed the RSPB programme in five countries: Turkey, where he is based, Greece, Cyprus, Portugal and Spain. At the VCF since February 2013, José is enjoying very much the opportunity to build an organisation from scratch. He aims to develop the VCF into a sustainable, effective, leading organization securing the protection of vultures and their habitats. This work involves not only on-the ground conservation projects and activities on vultures, but also, curcially, organizational development and management. On his (limited) spare time, José tries to go birdwatching, but he is also a part-time foreign correspondent (for a Portuguese newspaper), and enjoys practicing sport - mostly soccer, squash, and jogging.
Job Titles:
- Vulture Programmes Manager
Jovan Andevski was born in Skopje, Macedonia, and studied Biology there. His first working experience was as a project assistant on a vulture conservation project in Macedonia (2003). Since 2008 he is working as the coordinator for the Balkan Vulture Action Plan, firstly for the Black Vulture Conservation Foundation, then for the Frankfurt Zoological Society and since 2013 for the Vulture Conservation Foundation. During the last 15 years he worked on vulture research and conservation, project management and coordination in the Balkan region and Spain, and has also been involved in the Black Vulture reintroduction project in France and the Griffon Vulture reintroduction project in Bulgaria and Sardinia and also involved in actions against poisoning. He was also involved in the preparation of the Multi-species Action Plan to conserve African-Eurasian Vultures (Vulture MsAP), Cinereous Vulture Flyway Action Plan and the European Species Action Plan for the Cinereous Vultures.
Juan José Sánchez Artés was a member of the Advisory Board when he died of a heart attack in November 2016. He was 54 years old, and spent half of his life fighting for vultures and for Mallorca´s biodiversity. He was the president of two foundations - Black Vulture Conservation Foundation (BVCF) and Fundació Vida Silvestre Mediterrània (FVSM), as well as presiding over the ICTIB (Initiatives per a la Custòdia del Territori a les Illes Balears). At the end of his life, Juanjo was very busy managing the Ariant (Pollença) estate for conservation purposes - a key property donated to the FVSM in 2012. Juanjo was also a member of the VCF advisory board.
Juan José has spent much of his life fighting for the conservation of the black vulture in Mallorca, but he has also contributed much for vulture conservation projects in France (black vulture reintroduction project) and for the Balkan Vulture Action Plan.
Long live Juan José! We will work hard so that your dreams of reconnecting the black vultures populations in Europe, from Spain to Turkey via the Balkans, become true.
Lennaert Steen Lennaert Steen is a business controller at an insurance company in the Netherlands. He studied accountancy and financial controlling. He has been interested in birds for as long as he can remember and from 2000 the interest began to grow. Growing up in the east-part of the Netherlands he is familiar with most of the breeding birds in the Netherlands. Later on he expand his birding trips to all over Europe and the rest of the world. Vultures has always been one of his favorite bird families.
Louis Phipps is a conservation biologist who grew up in rural England where he became fascinated by wildlife and concerned with the impacts of human activities on nature and the planet as a whole. After studying Zoology at Durham University (UK), he traveled to South Africa where he coordinated field research and assisted with the daily management of a wildlife reserve for six years. Through his research into the spatial ecology of African white-backed and Cape vultures using GPS tracking data, Louis attained an MSc in Veterinary Science from the University of Pretoria and a PhD from Nottingham Trent University, and is a member of the IUCN-SSC Vulture Specialist Group. Louis also has practical experience in the management of wildlife populations and their key habitats, as well as anti-poaching activities. Following his PhD Louis worked for the WILD Foundation's Mali Elephant Project to develop the monitoring and research strategy and assist with project administration. Louis is looking forward to contributing to the VCF's research activities and overall mission to conserve vultures.
Born on 08/04/1958, in Antwerp, Belgium. Studied Zoology at Louvain University . Working since 1994 in Planckendael Animal Park as a curator and since 2010 also as bird curator in Antwerp zoo, which implies the management of the bird collection in the 2 zoos
We recorded the first breeding success of European Black vultures in Planckendael in 1997 and since then my "vulture" fascination is growing constantly.
One year later I was offered to take the management of the European breeding programme (EEP) for this species. Through this position I got involved in the fascinating work of BVCF, and was participating in the release of several zoo born chicks in France. In 2008, I was invited to become member of the VCF Board, being the link with the captive breeding network for one of the 4 species VCF is concentrating on.
Job Titles:
- Board Member of the LPO / BirdLife France
Michel Terrasse is Board member of the LPO/ BirdLife France, where he is one of the consultant administrator for the International and Overseas Mission.
Norbert Schäffer (Dr. rer. nat.) studied biology at the University of Regensburg and specialised in animal ecology at the University of Bayreuth. He wrote his phd thesis on an ornithological topic at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Vogelwarte Radolfzell. Norbert Schäffer worked for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) from 1996 - 2014. Today, he is chairman of Landesbund für Vogelschutz (LBV; www.lbv.de) in Bavaria, Germany. Norbert Schäffer is also the chief editor of the German birdwatching magazine Der Falke (www.falke-journal.de).
A birdwatcher since childhood... Ohad studied Biology and Zoology and Ecology in the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and the Tel-Aviv Univ. In 1989 established for the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel the Reintroduction Project to restore the raptors populations (Griffon & Egyptian vulture, Bonelli's eagle, Lanner falcon and Lesser kestrel) in Mt Carmel based on captive breeding and long term monitoring, tagging and telemetry tracking. Later it became a regional project to restore these populations in the Mediterranean habitat in Israel. Since 1992 he is leading the reintroduction of White-tailed sea-eagles in Israel and breeding of the remaining Lappet-faced vultures in captivity. From 1996 the monitoring and management of vulnerable and endangered raptors' population with the SPNI and Israeli Nature Reserves Authority (NPA) became part of his engagement. Since 2003 he is working at the Science Division of the NPA as the Avian Ecologist. Within his work he represents Israel in international conventions that relates to birds, working on the conservation of many species of birds and at the same time on the control of overpopulating species, invasive species and on legislation, law enforcement and more.
Pierre Gay is the director of two zoological parks in France: BIOPARC Doué la Fontaine and Les Sables d'Olonne, two structures created by his father and where he has invested all his life long. He has devoted his enthusiasm to the evolution of mentalities and the behaviors towards his profession. Trying to find the right balance between animal welfare and visitors'pleasure and creating natural "mises en scènes" brought him to consider his zoo'animals as ambassadors of their wild cousins. His involvement for wild nature begun with the vultures, by rescuing in his zoo injured vultures and providing newborn birds for reintroduction programmes. This involvement is still ongoing with 20 other "Nature projects" dedicated to nature conservation through developing positive cohabitation between human and animals.
Raphaël Néouze is the head of the vulture's conservation and reintroduction programs in the region of Grands Causses in France. He leads the team of the local office of LPO (Birdlife France), which is running actions in favour of the four European vultures species. He is the coordinator of the French National Action Plan in favour of the Black vulture and has prepared, implemented and developed the Bearded vulture reintroduction program in the Massif-central. Originating in that region, he got passionate for birds and vultures in his childhood while the Griffon vulture was reintroduced there for the world's first time! Raphaël studied biology and agriculture in Paris, in England, at the Royal Agricultural College, and in Ireland, at University College Dublin. Today, he works regularly with all the local, national and international stakeholders involved in the conservation of these species and their habitats: farmers, outdoor sports, scientists, hunters, parks, NGO's, public administration, communities, locals… bringing their energies together.
Metodija Velevski was born in 1977. He studied biology at the University in Skopje, and following graduation, he worked for the Macedonian Ecological Society on the vulture conservation project in Macedonia. He did his PhD thesis in conservation biology of the Egyptian Vulture in Macedonia at the University in Belgrade. Besides the vulture conservation, he has experience in general ornithological and ecological studies. Since 2014 he is curator-ornithologist at the Macedonian Museum of Natural History, and since 2015 is a board member of the Macedonian Ecological Society.
Uroš Pantović is a Serbian biologist, born 1986, in Čačak, Serbia. The fascination and interest for birds has followed him since high-school and finally led to enrolling in the Faculty of Biology in Belgrade, where he completed his BSc studies. After completing his MSc studies in Zoology at the University of Novi Sad. Following his love for birds, Uros volunteered in the Black Vulture Conservation Foundation in Mallorca for several months, where he got his first opportunity to experience vulture conservation. Through his close association with Bird Protection and Study Society of Serbia/BirdLife Serbia, Uroš gained experience relevant to conservation of various groups of birds and also in dealing with bird crime issues, such as poaching and poisoning. For several years, he also worked as a conservation biologist and programmes manager at a nature reserve near his home town. At VCF, Uroš is working on improving the situation with vultures and wildlife poisoning in the Balkans Anti-Poisoning Project (BAPP) and is looking forward to contribute to VCF's overall mission to protect and conserve vultures.
More than 30 years' experience with carrion eating birds in Europe and Africa. Chairman of the Mediterranean Griffon Vulture Working Group (EGVWG) since 2005 and member of the Raptor Research Foundation since 2000. He works in the ecology of vultures, mainly the Egyptian, Griffon, Cinereous and Cape vultures; also covering conservation and political issues, as the regulations of the Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) in Europe (2000-2008). International correspondent of the Vulture News Journal since 2000 formerly Vulture Study Group (EWT) publication and now IUCN Vulture Specialists Group. He has participated in more than 50 vulture conferences worldwide. Member of the Vulture Advisory Groups of the Spanish Ministry for the Environment and Junta de Andalusia Local Governments. He also develops Environmental Projects mainly for Renewable Energy worldwide, but mainly in South Africa, the EU28: Spain, The Balkans (Bulgaria, Montenegro, Bosnia Herzegovina and Serbia) Middle East (Syria, Jordan and Israel), Africa, Asia (India) and Latin America. More than 10 years experience in Environmental Impact Assessment; undertaking all aspects of environmental consultancy ensuring that client`s projects are fully compliance with legal regulations and statutory requirements. Wind farm collision risk assessment, design implementation of mitigation and compensation.