Carlos Andres Gallegos-Riofrío

Carlos Andres Gallegos-Riofrío is a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Vermont's Institute for Agroecology, with joint affiliations at Washington University in St. Louis' Buder Center for American Indian Studies and the Gund Institute for Environment. His interdisciplinary work bridges agroecology, nutrition science, and indigenous studies through participatory research frameworks.

Gallegos-Riofrío leads three primary research initiatives: (i) cross-cultural examinations of knowledge hegemony in nature-health studies with BIPOC communities, (ii) Earth-health microbiome connections using coherence models, and (iii) Andean collaborations analyzing health impacts of disconnection from traditional agroecosystems. As Research Coordinator of the Caliata Initiative, he facilitates sustainability projects in rural Andes communities.

His publications focus on:

• Decolonizing methodologies in environmental health research
• Food sovereignty and traditional nutrition systems
• Social marketing for public health interventions
• Indigenous cosmovisions in sustainable agriculture
• Community-based approaches to planetary health challenges

Recent work critically addresses cultural diversity gaps in sustainability science and promotes pluralistic knowledge systems. He maintains active collaborations across Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and the United States.