Claudia Vega
Program Coordinator, Mercury Program
Claudia has extensive expertise in the study of the dynamics and impacts of mercury in Amazonian populations and ecosystems. Before joining CINCIA in 2017, she conducted studies on heavy metal contamination in Magellanic penguins on the Brazilian Atlantic coast, and on the interaction of mercury and selenium in riverine populations in the Madiera River in the state of Rondônia, Brazil. She was also a lead researcher in a major study looking at mercury contamination in Yanomami indigenous communities resulting from illegal artisanal gold mining. She participates in multiple studies on mercury exposure in the Amazon region and leads several research initiatives looking at mercury dynamics in areas affected by artisanal and small-scale mining.
Claudia holds a bachelor's degree in Veterinary Medicine from the University of Guatemala; a master's degree in Public Health and Environment from the Escola Nacional de Saude Publica in Rio Janeiro, Brazil; and a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro. Claudia conducted her post-doctoral studies at the Escola Nacional de Saude Publica in Rio Janiero, Brazil with Dr. Sandra Hacon.
