Go4BioDiv

• Name: Zeballos, Gabriel
• Nationality: Bolivia
• Country of Residence: Bolivia
• Town: La Paz
• E-Mail: not public
• Profession: Biologist
• Educational Background:
  I am Bachellor in Biological Sciences, my thesis work involved the biomonitoring of genotoxic effects of air pollution employing plant bioassays. At the university I worked as Research Assistant in the Zoology and in the Environmental Quality Divissions of the Ecology Institute of La Paz.
• Where I live and how I view my environment:
  I live in La Paz (ca. 2 millon inhabitants), a city that sits on a sub tropical high altitude valley right on the watershed between the Amazon river basin and the endorreic basin of the Titicaca Lake (3800 m asl). From La Paz it is possible to see the snowy mountains of the Andean Range, which reach altitudes of more than 6000 m asl, and hold almost 20% of the tropical glaciars of the world. This is a city of contrasts, where people interact every day between prehispanic, colonial and contemporary traditions.
• Biodiversity means to me personally:
  Personally, as a biologist from such a rich country as Bolivia, that has more than 30 ethnical groups, more than 20 local indigenous languages, huge pristine and ancient ecosystems, and that is the last home for hundreds of endangered species, biodiversity means the way of understanding and living the life itself.
• My Symbol of biodiversity:
  The Mountains. Not only because they are the beginning of the basins, and the shelter of thousands of species, but also because in my culture they represent the very old ancestors of my people.
• My motivation for participating:
  To meet young people with the same interests but with different perspectives of biodiversity, in order to: 1) identify the global and regional concerns about biodiversity, exchanging each ones understandings, 2) learn from other countries experiences about solutions to the loss of biodiversity, 3) generate new ideas that will help the nations conserve the biodiversity, 4) create contacts with people from other countries in order to work together in the future, creating international nets of cooperation, and 5) to gain amazing experiences from such a rich and beautiful country as Germany.
• How did I show I am ready to "Go 4 BioDiv":
  It is difficult to know if one is ready to achieve some goals. In my first years at the university I was academy assisstant of Zoology and Biology. At the same time I belonged to a conservation organization, focused in extension activities and environmental education. My last university researches involved the biomonitoring of air and water pollution. Now, I am more interested in the conservation and access to water resources, related to the global climate change. For sure,the Go 4 Biodiv summit is a new challenge.
• My message to other participants:
  Your profiles are outstanding. I am sure this summit will have interesting results. The optimism is the best partner of a good plan. So... it´s up to us. And we have good chances.