Field Staff
Dr J Marc Foggin's Bio
More than 20 years’ experience in biodiversity conservation and community development, with primary focus on community-based initiatives in the Tibetan Plateau region of China and in Central Asian mountain areas. From 2014 until 2018, served as Associate Director of Mountain Societies Research Institute (MSRI), University of Central Asia (UCA). Lengthy experience in both NGO project implementation and academic research in fields of grasslands and wildlife ecology; community conservation projects; development projects focused on enhancing pastoralists’ livelihoods and well-being, including education, community health and income generation; community co-management and protected area management; policy analysis; and capacity building at different administrative levels. Has led the work of the non-profit organization Plateau Perspectives since 1998, and also has served as consultant for World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Fauna and Flora International (FFI) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). In 2013 served as Chief Technical Advisor (CTA) for the UNDP/GEF Qinghai Biodiversity Conservation Project, which seeks to strengthen the management effectiveness of the protected area system in Qinghai province, China. Previously was Honorary Research Fellow at the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology (DICE), University of Kent. Since 2016 has been honorary Research Associate in the Institute of Asian Research in the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs (SPPGA) at University of British Columbia (UBC). Professional member of the international Society for Conservation Biology (SCB), IUCN’s World Commission on Protected Areas, and several other IUCN working groups.
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Amadeus DeKastle's Bio
Amadeus DeKastle has been living and working in Kyrgyzstan since 2009. He holds a BSc in Biology and MA in Education from Liberty University, USA, and an MSc in Entomology from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, USA. He co-developed the “Central Asian Nature Guides” smartphone application with Plateau Perspectives in 2015 and subsequently led the creation of its first citizen science digital field guide and data tool, “Butterflies of Kyrgyzstan.” He also has consulted for University of Central Asia (UCA) through the Mountain Societies Research Institute.
Currently, he is Assistant Professor at the American University of Central Asia (AUCA) teaching undergraduate and graduate classes. He is also pursuing a PhD in Ecology at the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS) with research on environmental impacts of road infrastructure developments on freshwater habitats in Kyrgyzstan.
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Andrew and Jennifer Holloway's Bio
Andrew and Jennifer Holloway currently live in southern Kyrgyzstan with their three children. Andrew has a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alabama, an MS in Environmental Engineering from Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and a PE in Chemical Engineering. He has worked as chief engineer at a small engineering firm in China and as project engineer on renewable energy and environmental projects across the United States. Jennifer has a BA in Public Relations and an MA in Journalism, both from University of Alabama. She has written articles for various publications across several industries and worked with a refugee resettlement nonprofit organization in the United States. Together they enjoy hiking and camping with their kids in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan.
Dr M Torrance-Foggin's Bio
Marion Foggin is a community paediatrician. She earned her medical degrees at University of St Andrews and University of Manchester. Postgraduate qualifications include MRCP and MRCPCH and she gained a Masters in Community Child Heath at the Institute of Child Health, University of London. Following 10 years of medical experience in the UK including her final position as a Consultant Community Paediatrician in Northumberland as well as other development experience in inner city areas with high unemployment, she has since 1998 led the health and community development work of the international NGO Plateau Perspectives in Qinghai Province and Tibet Autonomous Region, China. While still contributing to the work of Plateau Perspectives in China, she has also contributed to projects in the Kyrgyz Republic related to the health and wellbeing of children with disabilities and is preparing to start further health development projects more widely in Central Asia. Her main focus remains on rural livelihoods and the wellbeing of pastoral communities in high mountain regions
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Grayson Chapman's Bio
Grayson Chapman is a co-owner and Operations Manager at Transoxiana Outfitters (also known as Oxus Outfitters), a mountain-region expedition and ecotourism outfitter based in Badakhshan, Tajikistan. Since relocating to Tajikistan in 2017, he has leveraged his skills in cross-cultural communication and outdoor expedition leadership to support responsible travel, local community engagement, and sustainable access to remote high-altitude environments.
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Philip and Julie Steiner's Bio
Philip and Julie Steiner live in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Philip holds a BA from Toccoa Falls College in Cross-Cultural Studies: TESOL, and an MBA in International Economic Development from Eastern University. Julie holds a BS in Cross-Cultural Studies from Toccoa Falls College, and an MA in Sociology from Sam Houston State University. She is also a licensed Community Health Worker. The Steiners have spent much of their career in China, focusing on several different aspects of community development. They have conducted health education, contributed to disaster relief and recovery, and participated with Plateau Perspectives in the implementation of a long-term community co-management conservation project with herder communities in the Yangtze headwaters. Most recently, they worked in the tourism sector in Tibetan areas of China, helping develop local businesses and opening their own tourism and hospitality services company. Philip is an avid birder and in his spare time is working to survey previously unbirded locations in Tajikistan.