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Ninthita Vandydonesavanh
Project Administration Officer
Ninthita, a lifetime resident of the Nam Et-Phou Louey area, graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Social Work from National University of Laos in 2016. She started working with WCS as the NEPL Administration Officer based in NEPL in 2017. Her responsibilities include managing and maintaining project supplies and equipment, organizing activity logistics, and assisting the field accountant.
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Oudomxay Thongsavath
Savannakhet Program Manager
Oudomxay Thongsavath first worked at WCS between 2011-2014 for crocodile conservation project Coordinator in the Xe Champhone Wetland. When this program was completed he continued working in Xe Champhone Wetlands with IUCN until 2019 when he rejoined WCS as the coordinator for the renewed and expanded Savannakhet Landscape Program. He holds a degree in forestry from the Savannakhet Agriculture and Forestry College as well as an English language teaching diploma from the Savannakhet Teacher Training College. He has more than 10 years of experience and specialization in community engagement, co-management, ecotourism, Wetland and endangered species conservation and has been a member of the IUCN/SCC Crocodile Specialists Group since 2013. Oudomxay believes that conservation tasks need time and to always include capacity building for local government and communities. Improving awareness of the long-term benefits to livelihoods from natural resource management and building local interest in biodiversity conservation are goals he works to achieve.
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Palina Souliyadeth
Human Resources and Government Liaison Coordinator
Palina Souliyadeth completed her Master’s Degree in International Economics and Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Management at the National University of Laos’s Faculty of Environmental Science. Before joining WCS, she worked with a group of student volunteers on the "Social Environmental Education and Development" (SEED) project. Her duties as Human Resources and Government Liaison Coordinator are within the financial, accounting and evaluation unit.
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Paserth Chanthavongsa
GIS and Smart data Analyst Officer
For more than 10 years, Mr. Paserth Chanthavongsa had worked in conservation protected areas in Bolikhamxay province, Lao PDR. He is the field technical and volunteer of PAFO Bolikhamxay and contracts with the IEWMP project. His work is wildlife monitoring survey, community, enforcement, and Land-use planning NGS PFA. Since September 2019, he has been working for WCS Lao PDR. as GIS and SMART data analyst Officer (ADB – Nam Ngiep1 Program).
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Phacksouliya Phommatheth
Program Coordinator
Phaksouliya Phommatheth joined the WCS Lao PDR Savannakhet Landscape team in 2021 as the Technical Coordinator. He holds two BA degrees, Environmental Sciences and English from the National University of Laos. Before joining WCS, Phaksouliya built his technical experience over six years has six year in various positions at different organizations and projects including: as Environment Consultant (NCG), GIS Specialist for Hydropower development, Environmental Safeguard Officer and water User Group (WUG) trainer for irrigation projects (PIADs Project-JICA; World Bank/GoL’s MIWRM Project) and as a Natural Resource Management program officer for Japanese Volunteer Center Laos (JVC). Phaksouliya’s diverse skillsets all him to assist the other technical staff and ensure their activities align with the SVK landscape’s overall objectives.
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Phatsa Konglasy
Ecotourism Officer
Phatsa Konglasy graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business English and Ecotourism at Souksavath College in Vientiane in 2014. In parallel to her studies, she worked at Hueyhong Vocational Training Center for Women for seven years. After graduation in 2015, she returned to her hometown in Muang Hiam and joined WCS Lao PDR to work as Ecotourism Officer in the Nam Et-Phou Louey NPA.
Phatsa is responsible of the NEPL NPA’s ecotourism visitor center in Muang Hiam, and the communication with future visitors, tour operators as well as activity coordination with the community-based ecotourism service providers.
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Phia Moua Valeeyiayee
Ecotourism Officer
Phia Moua, also known as Touy, is from the Hmong ethnic group and originally from Luang Prabang. He graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in English at the Souphanouvong University of Laos in 2011. He has worked for WCS as an Ecotourism Officer in Nam Et-Phou Louey National Protected Area since 2015.
Phia Moua is thankful to WCS and NEPL-NPA for the opportunity to work for wildlife and nature conservation together with local communities. He recognises how important healthy wildlife population and nature is for humans, and that wildlife and nature are the blood-vessel for us.
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Phonesavanh Milavong
Wildlife Health Project Officer
Phonesavanh graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology from the National University of Laos in 2015. She started working with WCS after graduating in 2015 as a project assistant under the LACANET project for two years and then moved to her present position in the Wildlife Health program and focusing on wildlife disease surveillance. Currently, she works as a Project Officer in the DTRA-funded Wildlife Health project.
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Sam Leslie
Savannakhet Program Director
Samuel Leslie completed his B.A. in Environmental Studies at Prescott College in 2009, after which he worked on ecological studies and as an expedition leader in the US, Canada, and South Africa. He first arrived in Lao PDR in 2012 as a Princeton in Asia fellow working for IUCN focusing on community-based conservation planning along the Mekong. In 2015 he received his MSc. in Conservation & Rural Development from the University of Kent (DICE). Following this he was based in Cambodia where he taught biodiversity conservation MSc. courses and worked as a consultant on diverse regional and global conservation projects. He returned to Lao PDR in 2019, where he works in the Xe Champhone Wetlands with diverse stakeholders to improve resource and land use management, sustainable livelihoods, and endangered species conservation. Sam’s professional focus has been on human wildlife conflict, freshwater protected areas, community-based conservation, and environmental education. He is a member of the IUCN-SSC Crocodile Specialist Group and an Associate Researcher of the Museo de Historia Natural "Alcide d'Orbigny", Cochabamba, Bolivia.
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Santi Saypanya
Country Program Director, Laos
For more than 15 years, Dr. Santi Saypanya has been assisting Lao PDR to better manage their protected areas, especially focused on facilitating the involvement of forest-dependent communities through development through conservation.
Dr. Saypanya holds a BA in business, an MA in social marketing in conservation and a Ph.D. in conservation, and began his career with Wildlife Conservation Society in 2002.
In January 2016, Dr. Saypanya began serving as Country Deputy Program Director with the Wildlife Conservation Society in Lao PDR, leading the development of National Protected Area management.
In January 2019 Dr. Saypanya was named the WCS Lao PDR Country Program Director.
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