Biography
Francisco Oliveira serves as a Program Officer for the Andes Amazon Initiative at the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, based in Brazil. He leads the implementation of the forest and freshwater ecosystem strategy, working to ensure that an additional 50 million hectares of interconnected freshwater and forest ecosystems in the Amazon basin are protected and effectively managed to sustain biodiversity and climate function. Francisco also contributes to the implementation of the AAI’s three other strategic goals in Brazil.
Francisco Oliveira has over 25 years of experience in tropical forest conservation, climate change mitigation, and sustainable land use across the Amazon. Building on the legacy of the Andes-Amazon Initiative, he works to expand protected areas and advance systemic approaches that safeguard forest and freshwater ecosystems from ecological tipping points and ensure their long-term resilience. Also represents the foundation in key philanthropic and conservation initiatives, including the Climate and Land Use Alliance, Forest, People and Climate, Protect Our Planet, and the Transition Fund Committee of the Amazon Protected Areas Program. He plays an important role in fostering collaboration among donors and implementation partners to strengthen strategic coherence and maximize conservation outcomes. Over his career, he has managed complex, multi-stakeholder programs in collaboration with national governments, NGOs, and international partners including BMU/Germany, DEFRA/UK, GIZ, KfW, and the World Bank. Prior joining the Moore Foundation, Francisco held senior roles at Brazil’s Ministry of Environment, where he led deforestation control strategies for the Amazon and Cerrado and supported the strategic implementation of the Amazon Fund with BNDES. He also directed land use mapping efforts and regional cooperation through ACTO. Earlier, he led WWF-Brazil’s Protected Areas Program, advancing ARPA and community governance with international partners. He also consulted for the World Bank, conducting the midterm review of the Amazon Sustainable Landscapes project and supporting technical assessments.
Francisco Oliveira holds a Ph.D. in Geography from the University of Cambridge, where he investigated the impact of environmental law enforcement on deforestation, land use change, and forest restoration in the Amazon. He also earned an M.Sc. in Conservation Leadership from the University of Cambridge, with a strong focus on biodiversity loss, climate change, and leadership in conservation. Earlier, he completed an M.Sc. in Landscape Ecology at the University of São Paulo, studying the effects of forest fragmentation on biodiversity across different land uses in the Amazon.
related links
Andes-Amazon Initiative 
Environmental Conservation
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