About Kristen Walker Painemilla

Kristen Walker Painemilla is Senior Vice President at Conservation International, where she leads global efforts to advance inclusive conservation grounded in human rights, governance, and community leadership. Her work contributes to a growing global movement to reimagine conservation as part of a broader systems transformation – one that recognises the deep interdependence between people, nature, and climate.

Throughout her career, Kristen has championed the integration of human rights and the social dimensions of conservation, including supporting the establishment of the Conservation Initiative on Human Rights in 2009.

She has been a leading architect in advancing direct access finance for Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities, working to transform how conservation and climate finance is governed and delivered. Through her leadership, she has helped shape new models that shift power and resources to communities stewarding critical ecosystems, influencing philanthropy, governments, and multilateral institutions.

Her work is informed by long-term engagement with Indigenous communities, including Mapuche in southern Chile.

From 2016 to 2025, she served as Chair of the IUCN Commission on Environment, Economic and Social Policy, helping to catalyse global dialogue at the intersection of nature, culture, and justice.

Kristen brings deep experience in systems change, coalition-building, and global engagement, and is committed to advancing community-led solutions at scale.