Natalia is a biologist, science communicator, outdoor educator, and expedition leader with a passion for connecting people with nature through exploration, learning, and conservation. For more than 17 years, she has worked with Vertical, helping participants develop leadership, environmental awareness, and a deeper understanding of the natural world through immersive outdoor experiences.

As part of Leadership Expeditions and Vertical’s programs, Natalia has guided leadership and educational expeditions throughout Antarctica, Patagonia, and the Atacama Desert, including numerous Wharton Leadership Ventures programs. Her unique combination of scientific expertise, communication skills, and outdoor experience allows her to help participants connect environmental challenges with personal growth, teamwork, and leadership development.

Natalia’s scientific career has focused on ecology, conservation, and environmental research. Her work has included studies of wild carnivores, Magellanic woodpeckers, Darwin’s frogs, and the impacts of climate change on ecological networks in Chile. Through both field research and public engagement, she has dedicated her career to improving understanding of biodiversity and conservation issues.

Her commitment to experiential education extends beyond Chile. Natalia worked as an instructor for the Philadelphia Outward Bound School in the United States, where she helped facilitate wilderness-based learning programs focused on leadership, teamwork, and personal development.

A lifelong outdoor enthusiast, Natalia has spent much of her life exploring wilderness areas around the world. She has hiked and traveled extensively throughout Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, South America, and Antarctica. Her connection to the outdoors began at an early age—famously, her family likes to say that she learned to walk on a mountain trail.

In 2018, Natalia served as Base Camp Manager for the first all-female Chilean expedition to Mount Everest, supporting one of the most significant milestones in Chilean women’s mountaineering.

Natalia is also the founder of Tuiga, an educational initiative that combines science, culture, and art to create engaging and meaningful learning experiences. Through this work, she seeks to make knowledge more accessible, relevant, and inspiring for diverse audiences.

In 2025, she graduated first in her class from the Master of Science in Science Communication program at University College London (UCL), one of the world’s leading institutions in the field. Today, she continues to bridge science, education, and exploration, helping individuals and organizations better understand both the natural world and their place within it.