The board of directors and team of AIDA, the Interamerican Association for Environmental Defense, are announcing a transition in its leadership. After 18 years of dedicated service, Astrid Puentes Riaño has decided to step down from her role as co-executive director, effective August 31, 2021.

Today, AIDA is a solid organization with regional presence, a committed board of directors and strong internal leadership. As such, the time is right for a transition and to further strengthen the organization for the benefit of Latin America’s people, communities, and environment.

Anna Cederstav, current co-executive director, will continue in a leadership role, and in the coming weeks we will begin the process of recruiting new executive leadership.

At this time of transition, we would like to express our deep appreciation and gratitude to Astrid. For nearly two decades, she and Anna have led AIDA and its team of legal and scientific professionals in working with hundreds of partner organizations in more than ten countries of Latin America. As a result, AIDA is today one of the most effective environmental law organizations in the region.

Astrid’s vision, strategic leadership and powerful command of various issues, jurisdictions, and national and regional laws, have strengthened AIDA and increased its impact. At the same time, Astrid has become one of the savviest and most dedicated environmental rights litigators in Latin America. She has helped establish the link between human rights and the environment and spearheaded efforts on climate change and climate justice in the region.

Astrid has been, and continues to be, a mentor to her colleagues, and we are all better because of her leadership, which we will miss. We are confident that she will continue to bring her passion, dedication and expertise to the defense of the environment and human rights in Latin America and around the world.

The AIDA board and team congratulate Astrid on all she has accomplished with AIDA and look forward to continuing our collaboration with her. We thank her for all she has contributed and wish her the best in her future endeavors.

We are grateful for the support of each of our allies and reiterate our commitment to working to achieve environmental justice, climate justice and strong environmental governance in our beloved region.