Sustainable Bolivia's Staff

Sustainable Bolivia’s Staff is the team that takes our goals into action. They are:

Erik Taylor

Executive Director

Erik was born and raised in Northern California, graduating from UC Davis with a degree in political philosophy. He’s worked as an educator in the US, a researcher for the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung in Berlin, Germany, and as a consultant and board member to non-profits in Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. 

He holds a masters’ degree in sociology from the Universities of Freiburg (Germany), KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) and Jawaharlal Nehru (India). In 2007, Erik Founded the 501(c)3 non-profit organization, Sustainable Bolivia. For the last decade he’s worked to promote Sustainable Bolivia’s mission in both the Andes and Amazon.

He’s worked as a researcher and graduate assistant at the University of New Mexico. He’s conducted research in the Peruvian, Ecuadorian and Bolivian Amazon. Alongside his wife, Sasha, and his father in law, Erik founded and oversees the daily operations of the Plant Medicine Retreat Pisatahua. In 2016, Erik helped establish the 20,000 hectare Aquicuana Reserve. He facilitates healing retreats in Europe, the US and South America. Outside of work Erik’s passions include surfing, gardening and plant medicine.

Wigberto Rivero

Erik Taylor

Executive Director

Chaca was born and raised in Riberalta, the capital of the Bolivian Amazon. For over 25 years, he’s worked as a professor of socio-cultural anthropology at the University San Andres in La Paz. He’s conducted research and written extensively on native communities of the Bolivian Amazon with a focus on high risks populations, indigenous sexuality, spiritual culture, sustainable development, indigenous rights and political participation.

Wigberto also served as the Bolivian State Minister for indigenous affairs, he’s been an adviser to numerous indigenous organizations, and worked as a consultant for indigenous development projects. He helped establish multiple indigenous territories and fought extensively for ingenious land rights. His investigations concerning ethnic and cultural diversity were used by the Bolivian Government as a basis for the new constitution of the Plurinational State of Bolivia.

He’s co-founder of Pisatahua and the Bolivian-based non-profit Fundacion Amazonia.

You might also be interested in: