Sara Ramirez

 Gender and youth lead and advisor South America Tropenbos International

 Sara Ramirez is the gender and youth coordinator and advisor for South America in Tropenbos International. Her efforts have been pivotal in building stronger relationships with grassroots organizations, particularly by helping to organize local women and youth groups. These groups are now better equipped to support territorial management and advocate for their communities.

Sara has extensive experience working alongside Indigenous, Afro-descendant, and local communities in the Amazon. One of her key initiatives was the introduction of participatory 3D land and sea modeling in Suriname. This innovative approach enabled local voices to be heard in spatial planning processes, fostering peer-to-peer dialogue and uncovering overlapping claims that were contributing to land and sea conflicts. The success of this method led at least four organizations in Suriname to replicate it in other areas of conflict resolution.

In recent years, Sara has become a vocal advocate for the land tenure rights of Indigenous and tribal peoples in Suriname. She has worked closely with the Saamaka tribe, helping to mobilize local youth and women’s movements to defend their collective land rights and protect their territories from the growing threats of logging and mining.

Sara’s impact is reflected in her diverse range of publications, including works on participatory mapping, knowledge co-production, and advocacy reports. 

Contact: sara.ramirez@tropenbos.org