Shannon Noelle Rivera
Focused on the Intersections of Conservation
About Shannon...
Shannon Noelle Rivera is a conservation scientist, wildlife crime researcher, and environmental consultant largely focused on international conservation and the importance of intersections within conservation practice, including addressing animal welfare issues, identifying gender-sensitive strategies, exploring under-prioritized areas of the illegal wildlife trade, and pursuing innovative monitoring and evaluation approaches for conservation effectiveness.
Shannon has worked across all seven continents on various conservation initiatives alongside NGOs, IGOs, governmental agencies, and private companies. Most recently, Shannon has served as a technical expert with USFWS Division of International Conservation, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Wildlife Crime, and US Forest Service. |
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Alongside these roles, Shannon takes time to work as an experienced science communicator. She is contracted as a naturalist and lecturer collaborating with Viking Expeditions and various renowned global cruise lines, championing for the protection of endangered species and the preservation of our natural world.
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Education
• United Nations Institute for Training & Research | Universitat Oberta de Catalunya Master's in International Affairs & Diplomacy 
• University of Winchester Master of Science, Animal Welfare Science, Ethics and Law, with Distinction Thesis: Surviving the Wildlife Trade in Southeast Asia: Reforming the ‘Disposal’ of Confiscated Live Animals under CITES. 
•University of Hawaiʻi, Mānoa
Bachelor's in Environmental Studies Bachelor's in Gender & Conflict Resolution Zoology Minor | Dance Minor Peace Studies Certification 
•University of California, San Diego Fundraising and Non-Profit Development Program 
•University of Buenos Aires Spanish Dance |
ACHIEVEMENTS AND AWARDS
2022 1st Place Award, Annual Award for Best Master's Thesis (UOC,UNITAR) 2020 USFS Regional Forester Award: Citizen Forester Program 2020 Recipient of NOAA / Pacific Risk Management Ohana Full Registration Scholarship 2019 ICCB 2019 Student Presentation Award Finalist, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2019 CITES CoP17 Delegate, Youth for Wildlife Conservation, Geneva, Switzerland 2018 Recipient of Society for Conservation Biology’s 2018 Graduate Research Fellowship 2018 1st Place Award, International Fund for Animal Welfare Annual Essay Competition, ‘Playing Politics with Animals: Corruption in CITES and the International Wildlife Trade’ 2017 Recipient of University of Winchester's International Taught Master Scholarship 2017 Recipient of US Fish & Wildlife Service Conservation Career Symposium Scholarship, Hakalau National Wildlife Refuge, Hilo Hawaiʻi 2017 Recipient of the Hawaiʻi Conservation Alliance’s HCC Student Scholarship 2016 Recipient of the UH Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program Grant 2016 1st Place Undergraduate Research & Social Science Oral Presentation, UH Undergraduate Showcase 2016 Recipient of the Associated Students of the University of Hawaii’s Scholarship 2016 Recipient of the University of Hawaii’s Achievement Scholarship 2016 Recipient of the Hawaiʻi Conservation Alliance’s Student Participation Opportunity Grant, 2016 IUCN World Conservation Congress |