Eliot Logan-Hines, Executive Director, has worked for over six years in the non-profit sector in Latin America. Prior to working with  Fundación Runa, Eliot served as Executive Director of Finca Project, a reforestation and environmental education initiative in Costa Rica. He has worked as an environmental consultant and advisor to climate change negotiations at the United Nations. Eliot received his masters degree in environmental management from Yale University where he studied tropical forestry and conservation finance. Eliot brings to Runa his expertise in agricultural cooperative development, tropical forestry, and non-profit management. He is a professional adventurer and a good cook.

Aliana Piñeiro, Director of Monitoring and Evaluation, first came to Fundación Runa as a community development intern in the summer of 2011. After five years of working in asset management in New York City, Aliana realized that her true passion was development. Following her experience in Ecuador and the completion of her masters degree in International Affairs at The New School, she joined the team to measure all the good that Runa does in the region. Aliana is our resident Runa mom and brings New York style to the jungle.

Carolyn Engel, Program Manager, is a new addition to the Runa team. Over the past three years Carolyn has lived in Peru, Chile, and currently Ecuador where she spent her first 6 months in the jungle living with a remote Kichwa community. There she promoted sustainable income projects through the development of their small community school. Carolyn's first-hand experience and work history leading study abroad trips with the Experiment in International Living allows her to successfully facilitate the intricacies of Runa's cross-cultural internship program as well as many other facets of the Foundation's communications. Prior to moving to South America, Carolyn completed a Bachelor's Degree of Liberal Arts at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts. Carolyn is enthusiastic about Runa's recent projects and believes that their unique vision will prove to be useful to the Amazon on both a small and large-scale.

Juan Dueñas, Director of Research, is from Quito but recently returned from New Zealand where he completed his Masters degree in Bio-protecion and Ecology at Lincoln University. Prior to that, Juan worked as a research assistant at the herpetology division of Universidad Católica Zoology museum and as a naturalist guide in sustainable tourism operations both at the Amazon and the Galapagos Islands. Juan is passionate about nature and outdoor sports. His training as a scientist had a strong focus on translating knowledge from biological sciences into applications that help to protect our ecosystems, and he is particularly interested in mitigating the impacts of human activities within natural ecosystems while searching for potential synergies between primary industries and nature. In his free time, Juan is always keen for some rock climbing, mountain biking or scuba diving.

Ian Cummins Director of Cartography and Supply Chain Mapping, joins the Runa team after working for the last two years in Indonesia doing conservation, concession valuation, sustainable supply chain mapping and REDD+ development. He is a graduate of the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies specializing in GIS, remote sensing and tropical forest management and has prior work and research experience in Honduras and the Peruvian Amazon. Ian likes to argue politics, make maps and play soccer.

Maureen Stimola, Research Coordinator, is a Princeton in Latin America fellow and recent graduate of Columbia University with a degree in Environmental Biology. Her laboratory and field research experience includes involvement in microbiology, conservation ecology, botany, and animal physiology projects. While working on an organic farm in her home state of Vermont, she discovered a passion for sustainable agriculture.  She loves learning languages, new recipes, and salsa and bachata moves.

Lindsay McGeehon, Peace Corps Volunteer, lives in Archdona. Lindsay is an agricultural volunteer and studied Animal Sciences at the University of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. She is currently working on community needs assessment, compost projects and agroforestry research with Runa. In Rukullacta, Lindsay is helping to build family gardens in the community and teach English. Lindsay likes to go hiking in the jungle and has earned the nickname "Mud Queen."

Helen Skiba, Peace Corps Volunteer, lives in the community of Atahualpa. Helen is an agricultural volunteer and is working towards her masters in Soil Science. Now she is working with Runa on the agricultural economics project, agroforestry research, soil analysis and compost projects. In Atahualpa, Helen has been giving training in biological composting and cacao pruning , as well as teaching English and computer classes. In her spare time, Helen plays on a basketball team in Atahualpa  and participates in traditional Kichwa dances . She is our resident expert on compost and has some serious machete skills!