Meet HECHO's New Communications Team!
HECHO hired two new staff people to grow our communications work. Meet our new communications team below:
Daniela Zavala
Daniela Zavala is the Communications Director for HECHO. Daniela is an Emmy-Award-winning journalist and communications professional with a deep passion for the great outdoors, where she enjoys camping, hiking and making short films of natural wonders in the United States and abroad.
In her role with HECHO, Daniela is responsible for developing compelling messages and communications strategies to engage target audiences and advance the organization’s policy, advocacy and education campaigns. Her goal is to protect public lands, promote climate justice, inspire more Latinos to get outdoors as well as to get them involved in conservation. She believes in the importance of connecting more people to nature as a key step to create a strong front to defend public lands and wildlife.
Prior HECHO, Daniela worked as a multimedia journalist for Univision Arizona, where she was committed to inform, educate, empower and give a voice to the Hispanic community. She covered a variety of news stories, including environmental issues in Arizona, impacting in particular the underserved populations. Her journalistic work made her a recipient of six Emmy awards and nine nominations.
Daniela has also worked as a national correspondent for “Azteca América” based in Washington D.C., and as a correspondent for "CNN World Report" on CNN International and "El Mundo Informa" on CNN En Español from Venezuela, where she is originally from.
Besides her work as a journalist, Daniela has broad experience in leading successful communications and public relations campaigns across Latin America and Brazil. She worked as a Public Relations Director for A&E, History and Biography channels, as well as a Communications Manager for Warner Channel.
Since 1997, Daniela has traveled solo to over 80 countries. In some of these world adventures, she has seen first hand different kinds of environmental issues, from the melting snows of Kilimanjaro caused by climate change and the massive deforestation in Madagascar due to the slash-and-burn practice, to wildlife at risk such as the mountain gorillas in Africa. Daniela has reported independently about these stories and issues through articles and short documentaries she produces herself.
Daniela has a Masters degree in Communications, Journalism and Public Affairs from American University.
She now lives in Phoenix, Arizona with her son and husband, with who she often explores and enjoys the great outdoors on the weekends!
GABRIEL GARCÍA-CONTRERAS
Gabriel García-Contreras is the Communications Coordinator for HECHO. Prior to working with HECHO, Gabriel has served in many different communication roles with corporate, government, and nonprofit entities in the Washington, D.C area; with the most recent as Press Secretary on Capitol Hill. As a DC native, he graduated from American University where he double majored in Political Science and Spanish Studies. Gabriel also recently finished his master’s degree at the George Washington University’s Graduate School of Political Management. As someone who is passionate about the outdoors and conservation work, he believes that the Hispanic/Latino perspective on U.S. environmental policies must be brought to the forefront to ensure that public lands are protected and accessible to all.