Nature Reserve & Biological Field Station
-Un poco del Chocó-

Nicole Büttner
Nicole was born in Bonn-Bad Godesberg in 1979 and grew up in Windhagen/Westerwald. In 1998 she began studying biology at the University of Bonn. After finishing the first two years of basic studies in October 2000 she travelled with two friends to Australia, New Zealand and Thailand for half a year, where she discovered her interest in field biology. Therefore, in her further studies she almost only chose courses with ecological topics. In February 2002, she participated in a three-week course in Brazil where edge effects in bird communities were studied using mist nets. The following year she travelled to Ecuador for a biological internship. Unfortunately, the internship turned out to be pure volunteer work. As Nicole was still fascinated by South America she decided to write her master thesis in Ecuador. In 2004, she conducted the field research for her thesis on pollination biology of bromeliads in Mindo. There she met her husband Wilo. In February 2005 she graduated from university and returned to Mindo. There she lived for a year and worked as a bird guide. At this time the dream of a Biological Station in Ecuador was born. To realize their dream Wilo and Nicole went to Germany and worked there for two years. In March 2008, Nicole emigrated to Ecuador. In October 2008, she participated in a course of the Ministry of Environment in Mindo and now she is a licensed natural guide and honorary forest ranger. Since 2008 she guides the National Geographic Student Expeditions in Mindo every summer.
Nicole manages the biological field station and supervises the biological field work and research projects in the reserve.

Wilfrido (Wilo) Vaca
Wilo was born in San Miguel de Los Bancos in 1972 and grew up in Mindo, where he went to school until he was 12 years old. At the age of 11 he had already carved his first wood sculptures. After school he worked with his father as a lumberjack for about five years and learned carpentry like many Mindeños did. At the age of 17 Wilo realized that logging has no future and stopped working with his father. So he lived on casual jobs in Mindo and in Quito. Because of his knowledge of wood, a few years later he assisted phenology studies at the Ecuadorian coast for a few months. In 1996, he travelled to southern Germany where he worked at different organic farms and learned German. In 2000, he returned to Mindo and established one of the first tubing businesses with some friends. When the construction of the OCP-Pipeline started the year after, he actively took part in the protests. At the beginning of 2002, he and other activists set up a protest camp in the canopy of the „Mindo-Nambillo“ Protected Forest. After three months of pacifistic protest the camp was cleared by the army. The activists were arrested twice as alleged terrorists and despite all protests the OCP-Pipeline was completed (more information in German or English) After these events Wilo and one of his brothers built the restaurant and home of his parents. The restaurant was successfully opened in February 2004, and he worked there with his mother until he went to Germany with his wife Nicole in December 2005. Back in Mindo in March 2008, they started looking for a property. In August they bought the 15 ha of montane rainforest for their project and Wilo started building their own house. In 2010 the construction of the station’s house followed.
Wilo is responsible for the carpentry and maintenance work, the improvement of the trail system and the care for the organic garden. Besides supervising the volunteer work he also enriches the station with his culinary skills.