Esther Vallado

About me

I dream of a planet in which humans live in harmony with themselves, each other and their environment.

As a result, my trainings have a strong psychological component: it is not just about becoming more aware and more connected to nature, it is about changing from within, it is about fulfilling your dreams..

I am a freelance trainer and facilitator specialised in environmental issues. My background is in environmental sciences and natural resources management. After several years of working with leading nature conservation organisations, such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature, World Wide Fund for Nature, Friends of the Earth, International Young Naturefriends and the Green Party, I discovered non-formal education and saw its potential as a tool to create a planet in which humans live in harmony with nature. Since then, I have lead many trainings in environmental education and awareness raising, including topics such as ecological footprint reduction, transition, green entrepreneurship, ruralisation, nature connection, sustainable lifestyles ... and have founded a nature conservation NGO (Asociación Biodiversa) which I currently manage.

I have been an environmental activist for as long as I can remember. I love my work and I also love spending time in nature, hiking, pilgrimages and discovering new landscapes, places, people and cultures.

My skills

• Constructive


• Cooperative


• Creative


• High emotional intelligence


• Practical


• Resilient


• Resourceful

• Empathy


• Honesty


• Respectfulness


• Responsibility


• Sensibility


• Trustworthyness

Why you should work with me

I am creative, cooperative, practical, resilient, resourceful, empathetic, respectful, and trustworthy:

I also belong to pools of trainers such as:

• SALTO: www.salto-youth.net/tools/toy/esther-vallado.2848/

• International Young Nature Friends: www.iynf.org/senior-trainers/

• Youth@Work: https://youthatworkpartnership.org/team/esther-vallado/

• Spanish National Agency (internal database)

• Youth and Environment Europe (YEE) (internal database)

My work experiences

Training experience (full-time international training courses, six to seven days long (specified if otherwise) which I co-designed and co-delivered, in multicultural trainer teams:

• Small Foot: How to Reduce your Ecological Footprint;

• Youth for Rivers;

• Transition Communities: Alternatives for a Sustainable City Life;

• Ruralise Yourself!;

• Follow-up and Impact of International Projects;

• Environmental Training for Eco-Trainers;

• Supporting Youth Creating Green Start-ups;

• Connecting with Nature;

• Wake Up, Green Up! (five days);

• Transatlantic Summer Academy on Sustainability (3 weeks);

• Wake Up, Green Up! II (five days);

• Patterns of Activism;

• Live Sustainably: how to live the present without compromising the future;

• Building Eco-Literacy in Youthwork.

Professional experience:

• Coordinator of educational programmes at Asociación Biodiversa, Spain, nine years (ongoing)

• Environmental adviser to the regional Green Party, Spain, two years

• Coordinator of WWF local group, Spain, two years

• Project officer, IUCN, Belgium, two years

• Environmental/sales engineer, Lenntech Water Treatment, the Netherlands, 14 months

My education & training

Background: Environmental sciences and natural resources Management: Most relevant training for trainers:

• Co-creating the Emerging Future 2018: The Schumacher Certificate in Leadership and Facilitation

• Special effects: simplicity, depth and nature-based methods in youth work and training

• Advanced training on group processes and facilitation

• SALTO (Support, Advanced Learning and Training Opportunities) ToT, one-year European training for trainerscomprising three, one-week gatherings of trainers and a practice project

My references

For co-trainers, please check here: www.salto-youth.net/tools/toy/esther-vallado.2848/ For employers, please check here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/esthervallado/