11 Dec, 2019 | BX Team

Art and Lifestyle

Photo: Amaru Villanueva Rance

THE 100TH EDITION AND 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF BOLIVIAN EXPRESS ARE DEDICATED TO OUR FOUNDER AMARU VILLANUEVA RANCE. WITHOUT HIM THIS ADVENTURE WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE.

DIRECTORS

Amaru Villanueva Rance

Co Founder

Amaru founded the Bolivian Express back in 2009. He currently works for the Fundación Friedrich Ebert and is undertaking a PhD in Sociology at the University of Essex. Previously he was the director of the Centro de Investigaciones Sociales (CIS) of the Vice Presidency of Bolivia and worked as professor in Cultural Interaction, Critical Thinking and Academic Writing at the Universidad Católica Boliviana. He was also a consultant on Internet and Politics for the UNDP. He lives in La Paz, Bolivia.

Ivan Rodriguez Petkovic

Co Founder

‘God, time flies. Ten years ago some Bolivian/ English / Irish / Serbian / Swiss kids got together to embark upon this unexpected life-experiment adventure. Now, after many memories collected, words crossed and written, faces, pictures and trips, Bolivian Express launches its 100th issue. Cheers to everyone who’s been involved in some way or another with this life-changing experience, cheers to those who look for happiness and satisfaction in the small things in life, and cheers to those who appreciate the gift of sight and understand what this gift means. Live long!’

Rodrigo Barrenechea

Director

‘Bolivian Express represents, in addition to being a social entrepreneurship which contributed greatly to Bolivia, a whole
decade of experiences with a team that became a family and that, to date, received more than 400 people from all parts of
the world trying to show the magic of our country.’ Rodrigo Barrenechea is 30 years old. He spent more than 12 years dedicated to strengthening ventures in private and public enterprises. With a background in business administration, Rodrigo is also responsible for Social Innovation of the state through his work at the Ministry of Development Planning of Bolivia.

Sharoll Fernandez

Co Founder

An Aymara-Jewish artist born in La Paz, Bolivia, Sharoll co-founded the Bolivian Express. She’s taught art history to
student filmmakers, and her training in dance and literature allows her to combine her aesthetic proposal with cryptic metaphors, powerful movement and deep reflection.

PARTNERS

Jack Kinsella

‘Back in 2009, before Bolivian Express had opened its doors to the public, we pitched ourselves to the world as ‘Journalism,
Adventure and Social Impact in Bolivia.’ How true these words would end up ringing for me and for all involved! I look forward to the
100th issue.’

Xenia Elsaesser

‘I remember when Ivan called me and said, “So, do you think are we going to do this magazine idea? When can we Skype
with Amaru and Jack?’ It felt like a game. Now, ten years on, I’ve not been involved anymore for a long time. I’m in awe of the
dedication and passion that’s kept it going till 100, and so proud I was a small part of that journey. Well done BX teams past and present!’

EDITORIAL TEAM

Caroline Risacher

Caroline first joined the Bolivian Express as an intern in 2012 and ended up staying there for a year. She came back in 2017 and became the editor-in-chief and co-director of the magazine.

Matthew Grace

Matthew Grace has worked for the BX since 2012. He’s written about foreigners behind bars, an isolated jewel mine on the Paraguay River and other subjects that make Bolivia such a fascinating country. He lives in the Bronx with his partner, dogs and cats when he’s not exploring South America.

Juan Victor Fajardo

Juan Victor has worked for the BX since 2012 and is a journalist based in Caracas, Venezuela.

Niall Flynn

Niall was a BX intern in 2012 and has since completed translation and editing assignments for the magazine. He divides
his time between the north of England and New York City, working as a freelance translator and interpreter for the United
Nations.

William Wroblewski

William Wroblewski was the editor of Bolivian Express between 2015 and 2017, and helped launch the BX DocUnit. Living in Bolivia for six years, he continues his work as an award-winning video journalist and multimedia producer based in La Paz. He has collaborated with Agence France-Presse, AJ+/Al Jazeera, The New York Times, OZY, and many documentary productions and international organisations.

COORDINATORS

Renata Lazcano Silva

Social Coordinator

Renata joined the BX Team in February 2019. She has a degree in marketing and logistics. Her curiosity and outgoing personality makes her enjoy working under the diverse world this magazine offers. She loves to dance more than anything in life and is currently fond of Ultimate, a non-contact, self-refereed mixed team sport played with a flying disc or ‘frisbee’.

Wimer Machaca

General Coordinator

Wilmer Machaca has been working for Bolivian Express for the last six years. Although his work is mainly administrative he also wrote several articles on Andean culture. The task he enjoys the most is to bring the magazines to his readers around the city. Wilmer lives in La Paz, he is a cyber-activist and a militant of just causes.

PRODUCTION

Adriana L. Murillo Argandoña

Adriana is a literary journalism writer and Spanish teacher, started working at BX as a production collaborator in 2014, later became head of production in 2016 until now. From the first moment she fell in love with the magazine and its essence, for her it has been a magnificent journey with wonderful people and experiences will always remain in her memory.

Valeria Wilde

Valeria Wilde was head of production for Bolivian Express between April 2014 and October 2016. She is currently an art director and costume designer for movie sets. She is also the creative director of her clothing brand ZEF Upcycling.

PHOTOGRAPHY/DESIGN

Luis Aranda

Luis has been in charge of the magazine’s design since mid 2017, since then, he has enjoyed helping to evolve the already great Bolivian Express brand. He runs a web and graphic design studio called El Gran Poder Estudios since 2014.

Michael Dunn Caceres

Michael Dunn is a photographer based in La Paz, he joined the BX team in 2010 as its graphic designer and photographer. He is also the art director of the magazine Diafragrama and creative director of Cábala.

Alexandra Meleán

Alexandra, 28 years old, is a BX alumni and ex-photography instructor. She is a photographer, graphic designer and marketing communications specialist. She co-founded two restaurants in La Paz (Popular and sister restaurant Ahijada Ajiceria). Her work has been published by the UN, the New York Times and CNN.

Joaquín Leoni M.

Journalism Instructor

Joaquín Leoni M. worked for Bolivian newspapers La Razón, La Prensa, Los Tiempos, El Potosí and Opinión. He worked for the Bicentennial Library of Bolivia and has also been a press coordinator for Bolivia TV. He is currently a partner in SATVA S.R.L, a communication agency.

Changtse Quintanilla

DocUnit instructor

Changtse, 19 years old, is a photographer and videographer based in La Paz, Bolivia. He is part of the sports marketing agency 360 Invictus and he is the docUnit instructor at Bolivian Express. He has worked for Nike, Toyota, Selina and Bolivian governmental agencies.

Special thanks to: Sara Shahriari, Sophia Vahdati, Anna Grace, Manuel Seoane, Hugo Cuellar, Pedro Pablo Siles, Jerusa Pozo, Virginia Tito Gutiérrez, Reynaldo González, Nicolás Taborga, Marco Tóxico.