Station team
Field Coordinator
Station Manager
Our Station Manager, Charlotte Foale, joined CPBS in 2007. Charlotte was born in England and has lived in New Zealand and the United States prior to moving to Costa Rica. She first visited CPBS in 2007 as a volunteer, with a plan to stay for three months, which she soon realized was not a likely timeline. She now lives in San Francisco de Tortuguero with her husband, Manuel, and her son, Emanuel. She is fluent in both English and Spanish. She oversees station logistics and day-to-day functionality. Charlotte is passionate about her position and has been a vital part of CPBS since the day she arrived. She supports the scientists who visit CPBS, has built and maintains meaningful relationships with the local community, and is a brilliant steward for the local environment.
Manuel Arias, our Field Coordinator began work with CPBS in 2012. Manuel is a born naturalist. Having grown up in Guapiles and worked outside for most of his life, he is an expert in the local wildlife. He uses his ecological knowledge and expertise to work with interns and volunteers to maintain most of our long-term monitoring projects, helps to develop the logistics of new projects, and uses his handyman knowledge and expertise to keep the station running.
Research Coordinator
Eline Mariano, our Research Coordinator since September 2024, grew up in France and completed her Masters in Biology of Organisms and Ecology in Belgium. She first visited CPBS in 2024 for her 4-month Masters internship, and returned after graduation to work full-time with us. She works closely with the Station Manager and Field Coordinator to ensure the quality, transparency and continuity of the work at CPBS.
She is most passionate about plant-animal interactions and has an ongoing desire to learn more about how organisms function in their ecosystems. With this, she manages the development and integrity of all short- and long-term projects carried out at CPBS, from field data collection to statistical analysis. She also supervises interns on a wide range of research topics, from project design to report writing, including data collection methods and analysis.
Board of Directors
The COTERC board provides strategic oversight and oversees the management of the station.
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Director at Large
Kymberley has known the station since its inception and joined the Board in 2007, originally in the role of Director of Conservation and Research, and now sitting as Chair. Having earned her collaborative PhD from the University of Toronto as an Environmental Anthropologist, she has carried out research on primates in southern China and Honduras. Taking the anthropological perspective, she has examined the interface between mammals, forests, and people, looking for conservation management solutions. It is her lifelong passion and work in research, conservation, and education which she brings to COTERC and their supporting role for Caño Palma Biological Station.goes here
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Director of Executive Operations
Tansy first travelled to the station in 2011 for a stay of a month where she learnt valuable life skills, cemented her love of nature and met life long friends. Whilst her professional career has been in the Arts/Culture sector in London, the station has never been far from her mind and it was so special to visit again three times in recent years. Tansy believes that Caño Palma is a truly remarkable place and is delighted to be part of the board and be able to give back to the organization that has brought so much joy to her life.
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Director at Large
Nick joined the board in 2022 as the Director of Grants. He began his involvement with COTERC in 2015 when he came to Caño Palma Biological Station as a mixed-taxa intern with an intent of staying for eight weeks, but stayed on for six months, accepting a role as assistant coordinator for the sea turtle monitoring program. He returned in 2016 as a staff member for a full season as the lead sea turtle monitoring coordinator, while also supporting many other monitoring and research initiatives as time allowed. Needless to say, after nearly one and half years at Cano Palma, he viewed it as his second home and still does to this day. He has held positions with the Pennsylvania Game Commission as a whitetail deer biologist aide, as well as with the Florida Department of Agriculture ensuring regulatory compliance with pesticide use. Nick now works as a full time staff wildlife biologist at a renewable energy company supporting the responsible siting and development of solar energy and battery storage projects across the United States. He is also completing a masters degree in the School of Forests, Fisheries, and Geomatic Sciences at the University of Florida. He continues to have a strong affinity and dedication to conservation and aims to get back to Cano Palma as much as possible, while supporting it from afar in any way he can.
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Director of Finance
Mitch joined COTERC in 2023 and supports the Director of Finance. He works as a spend governance analyst at Manulife Financial where his primary focus is around data analytics and reporting against HR metrics. Mitch majored in Economics and minored in Financial Mathematics during his time at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario where he grew up. His passion for the outdoors is shown through his love of soccer, hiking and back country camping in various locations across Ontario.
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Director of Marketing
I’ve always believed that stories can move people — and when shaped with intention, marketing becomes a powerful tool for impact. Over the years, I’ve focused my career on working with organizations that are driving change in education, sustainability, research, and community health.
As a marketing leader, I’m inspired by organizations whose core mission is to improve the lives of individuals — whether through access to knowledge, equitable healthcare, environmental stewardship, or community empowerment. My passion lies in helping these organizations find their voice, clarify their purpose, and tell their story in ways that resonate deeply and authentically.
Whether I’m shaping strategy, building programs, or crafting narratives, I approach every role with purpose and heart. I believe in marketing that serves a mission, storytelling that connects, and communications that amplify organizational voice while creating meaningful, lasting impact.
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Director of Data Integrity
Sarah joined the board in 2023. She visited Caño Palma for the first time in 2019 as an intern on the turtle project, returning in 2021 and 2019 as a turtle research assistant. Sarah's experiences at Caño Palma fostered her love for tropical biodiversity and ecosystems. She is currently a PhD candidate studying the effects of drought intentensification on neotropical insects. At Caño Palma, Sarah is interested in contributing to the management, organization, and preservation of COTERC's valuable long-term datasets.
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Vice Chair
Jess joined the board in 2022 as the Director of Web Services. She first visited Caño Palma as a Turtle Monitoring Intern in 2014 and returned as a Research Assistant in 2015, reveling in the rich company and tropical diversity that the station has to offer. Jess now works as a Project Manager for an environmental consulting company in Monterey, California, where she is also completing her master’s degree in Environmental Science. She is especially passionate about tropical and coastal conservation and hopes to continue pursuing these passions in a professional setting.
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Director of Corporate & Philanthropic Engagement
Geoff’s love of nature began as a child when he watched the first screening of David Attenborough’s Life on Earth, and then saved up his pocket money for two months to buy the book. He has a PhD in artificial intelligence, has run two high-tech startups, and has advised dozens of global companies on sustainability. Geoff co-founded and for 10 years ran Future-Fit Foundation, a UK charity set up to encourage and empower companies to create a flourishing future for all life on Earth. He joined the COTERC board in 2025 to forge new partnerships with companies and investors that will help us scale up our impact.
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Chair
Tom first visited Cano Palma in 2008 and joined the board in 2023 as the Director of Strategy. He has a DPhil in Zoology, focused on the impact of human land-use change on biodiversity and ecosystem function. Tom has worked at a variety of charities, encouraging multi-national businesses and financial institutions to align their activities with the needs of people and planet. He recently founded Transition Agency, which seeks to empower medium-sized businesses to embed purpose into the core of what they do. Tom is passionate about tropical rainforests and believes their protection is essential for a flourishing society.