Belize Program Directors, Grettel Calderon and Jeff Stivers
Grettel Calderon is a native “Tica” from Costa Rica who began her career as an executive secretary then translated her penchant for details and organization to become one of the most knowledgeable and proficient Costa Rica adventure travel planners. She now has over 16 years experience as our Central America Program Director designing Costa Rica eco tours and to Panama, Nicaragua and Belize from Wildland Adventures’ field office as our in-country expert. Always exploring her native country, Grettel has also traveled throughout Central, South and North America, as well as in Europe, Asia and Africa. After living 3 years in the United States Grettel gained valuable insight into planning Costa Rica travel vacations for active and inquisitive Americans. She is an introspective and a conscientious listener who understands each traveler’s personal interests and style, especially Costa Rica family vacations. She enjoys cycling, cooking with fresh herbs from her garden, practices meditation and yoga, and she volunteers in a ‘feed the hungry’ program delivering meals to some of the poorest neighborhoods in the capital city of San Jose.
Jeff shares his passion for venturing out to explore new places and distant cultures both past and present. He holds a BA in Anthropology from Colorado College and has participated in archaeological field work on Easter Island, and in Tanzania, Niger, Sudan, and southwest Colorado. Along his journeys Jeff has developed language skills in French, Spanish, and Swahili. He believes that the ancient past can shed light the way for a better future. As Program Director with experience in Belize, Guatemala, Morocco, Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands, Jeff is intrigued by how both indigenous peoples and modern cultures cope with the new stresses and opportunities of globalization. Aside from travel, Jeff enjoys mountain biking, hiking, fishing, soccer, photography and cooking. Based on his extensive travel to remote regions of the world, he understands that the secret to having a rich and meaningful life-changing trip is to make honest, personal connections with local people.