Jorge Torres Ortega

Gregory S. Gilbert Research Group

Environmental Studies Department, University of California Santa Cruz

Jorge A. Torres Ortega

Ph.D. Student, Environmental Studies
Jointly advised by Jeff Bury

Tropical forest conservation, sustainable development, ecotourism

I am interested in forest regeneration, private conservation and ecotourism in Central America. I am studying how economic incentives motivate landowners to implement different management practices in second growth forest, and the impact that those management practices have on forest composition. My study site is located in Costa Rica, in a mixed protected area (National Parks, Private Reserves, and forest in private land), where private owners (NGOs, eco-tourism companies, industrial and artisanal farmers) participate in the creation and protection of biological corridors.more research interests...

Email: jtorreso <at> ucsc.edu Office: 429 Natural Sciences 2
Snail-mail: Jorge Torres, Environmental Studies, 1156 High St., University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA

Full CV

Abbreviated Curriculum Vitae

Jorge Torres

Education
University of California Santa Cruz (Ph.D. Student 2008-present)
Universidad de Costa Rica (BS. Ecotourism, focus on Biology)

Honors
Cota Robles Graduate Fellowship (2008-2012)

Select Recent Publications
The Finding of Rhodnius pallescens Barber, 1932 (Reduviidae: Triatominae) in Palm Trees (Attalea butyracea)
     in North Costa Rica. Authors: Rodrigo Zeledón, Juan A. Morales, Myriam Scally, Jorge Torres,
     Sergio Alfaro, Heriberto Gutiérrez and José A. Vargas. Boletín de Malariología y Salud Ambiental.
     Vol. XLVI, No. 1, Enero-Julio 2006
Educational Guides for Watershed Protection. Doc. ASOTEM, 1998.

Select professional experience
2005-2008    Independent Naturalist Guide and Consultant, Monteverde, Costa Rica
2001-2005    Course coordinator for the Monteverde Institute, Costa Rica

Select teaching experience
Teaching assistant for General Ecology UCSC. (2008)
Independent Naturalist Guide and Consultant, Monteverde, Costa Rica (2005-2008)
Course coordinator for the Monteverde Institute, Costa Rica (2001-2005)
Environmental Education and Projects Coordinator, Asociación para el Manejo Sostenible de la Cuenca del Río Tempisque”, Liberia, Guanacaste, Costa Rica (1998-2001)

Expanded Research Interests.
I am studying how economic incentives motivate landowners to implement different management practices in second growth forest, and the impact that those management practices have on forest composition. My study site is located in Costa Rica, in a mixed protected area (National Parks, Private Reserves, and forest in private land), where private owners (NGOs, eco-tourism companies, industrial and artisanal farmers) participate in the creation and protection of biological corridors.