Science Insight: How Lucia Torres is bringing people into nature’s frame – Explained

When Lucía Torres tells stories about nature through video, she starts with people.

That was the case in one of her favorite reports, about a small town in Mexico that was forced to relocate after years of rising sea levels and increasing storms and floods. By spending time with residents who had lost their homes, she built relationships based on “trust and reciprocity.” The result? “We were able to put a face on who is being affected by climate change,” she says, “which is something very complicated to do.”

This ethos now shapes the way she leads Mongabay’s video team as managing editor: stories start with people, whether they are sharing on screen, reporting in the field, or filming behind the lens. “I like to say that at Mongabay we do global journalism but from a local perspective,” Torres says. “Every time we produce a video for Mongabay, there’s a local crew involved in the process of building the story.”

Over her five years at Mongabay, Torres has led Mongabay’s expanding video team, with a keen eye for creativity and innovation. Her tenure has seen them test formats, experiment with style, and raise production standards. “It’s really inspirational to see how the type of journalism we are doing is very creative, very new, and very fresh,” she says. The 2022 video series Chasing Deforestation marked a turning point for Mongabay, which demonstrated “how investing in thoughtful scripting, visual storytelling, and strategic delivery can truly elevate the impact of Mongabay’s work.”

At the same time, Torres has a strong interest in mentoring her peers to achieve professional growth. “I also love coaching our team and freelancers, helping them grow their skills, tap into their strengths, and push their storytelling further with every video,” she says. “Supporting that creative evolution is one of the most rewarding parts of what I do.”

Before Mongabay, her career included writing and production roles at some of Spain’s top media organizations, including Agencia SINC, Cadena SER and Radiotelevisión Española. She’s also delivered presentations on video and science journalism internationally, and her leadership has been recognized by the Poynter Institute’s Leadership Academy for Women in Media in 2024 and the Solutions Journalism Network Fellowship in 2025.

Ultimately, for Torres, her career at Mongabay boils down to impact: “Knowing that our work not only informs but also inspires change keeps me motivated every day.”

What follows is a conversation with Torres about her career at Mongabay, including the stories she’s proudest of and her commitment to innovating video journalism. This interview is part of Inside Mongabay, a series that spotlights the people who bring environmental and conservation stories to life across our global newsroom.

An interview with Lucía Torres

Mongabay: What inspired you to become a journalist?

Lucía Torres: I started my career studying biology at university. Back in college, I realized there was a huge gap between science and the general public. I felt journalism was a really good tool to build bridges between these two groups and provide the stories that the general audience needs about science.

Many things in science can get really technical or specialized and become distant from a general audience. Journalism provides an opportunity to make complex topics more accessible for anyone.

I also realized that science was a very good place to start with journalism because there are always new findings from research that can be reported. That matches well with what journalism brings to the table, which is news.

Mongabay: What inspires you to work at Mongabay?

Lucia Torres: I feel very privileged to have worked for Mongabay for almost five years now. I’ve been able to build a team from scratch, and we’ve been very creative with what we produce for video and the stories we pick. It’s really inspirational to see how the type of journalism we are doing is very creative, very new, and very fresh.

We’re trying to reinvent ourselves all the time and create new strategies to reach more people, especially through social media. Within the team, we’re always trying to improve ourselves and find new formats that can be entertaining and fun. We want to create stories that are more inspirational on video.

I feel that at Mongabay we have a lot of freedom to decide what stories we cover and how we cover them. We’re lucky to have that independence and to reach many stories that are usually untold or underrepresented in mainstream media.

Mongabay: In your career, what have you specialized in, and what issues are you most passionate about?

Lucía Torres: The issues that I’m most passionate about are specifically inspirational solution stories. I really like to provide stories about new technologies being developed to solve environmental problems. I also love covering stories about people who are trying to look for a solution to local issues.

I feel that nature has mostly been covered over time, especially in video, from a wildlife perspective. We have put a lot of focus on wildlife, but not that much on people, who are also a big part of nature. Indigenous communities, specifically, play a key role in environmental stories. I like to bring those stories to video, putting faces in front of the camera so they become the main characters of the stories we cover.

Mongabay: How does the region you work in shape the way you report on environmental issues?

Lucía Torres: That’s a tricky question. I like to say that at Mongabay we do global journalism but from a local perspective. We accomplish this in different ways. First, we try to find stories that are happening locally but are related to a global issue. It’s also very important for us to rely on local people not only as sources for the story but also as contributors to the reporting. That can be local reporters, videographers, video editors or fixers. Every time we produce a video for Mongabay, there’s a local crew involved in the process of building the story.

Mongabay: What do you most enjoy about your work?

Lucía Torres: I enjoy exploring new approaches to video journalism — constantly testing fresh ways to tell stories that connect with audiences. I also love coaching our team and freelancers, helping them grow their skills, tap into their strengths, and push their storytelling further with every video. Supporting that creative evolution is one of the most rewarding parts of what I do.

Mongabay: What has been the most rewarding part of your career so far?

Lucía Torres: The most rewarding part of my career has been seeing the impact of the stories we tell at Mongabay. Knowing that our work not only informs but also inspires change keeps me motivated every day. By impact, I mean how other organizations and media outlets repurpose our footage, since we’re a Creative Commons platform. I also love seeing when our videos are brought to the big screen, especially for rural communities. It’s incredibly fulfilling to see how video journalism can be a tool for advocacy and raising awareness on a global scale.

Mongabay: What project are you proudest of and why?

Lucía Torres: What I’m most proud of is our growing commitment to stronger storytelling and higher production quality in our videos. We’ve also become more intentional about the formats we use to reach and engage digital audiences. Our series Chasing Deforestation, which began in 2022, marked the beginning of that shift, a clear example of how investing in thoughtful scripting, visual storytelling and strategic delivery can truly elevate the impact of our work.

Mongabay: What is one of your favorite stories you’ve covered for Mongabay?

Lucía Torres: One of my favorite stories is one we produced about the first climate-displaced community in Mexico. They have been displaced for almost 10 years now from a small town called El Bosque in the state of Tabasco. In recent years, the town has been suffocated not only by sea level rise but also by an increased frequency of storms and floods. They’ve been forced to leave and start a new life in a new town 12 kilometers [7.5 miles] from their original homes. It’s a very emotional story.

What I really enjoyed about producing it is that we were able to put a face on who is being affected by climate change, which is something very complicated to do. I also feel we reported on that topic in a very sensitive way that was not judgmental or trying to convince anybody, but instead just documenting what’s going on.

Mongabay: What are three interesting takeaways from this story?

Lucía Torres: First, how climate change affects people’s lives is not something that happens from one day to another. It advances slowly, but it is advancing steadily.

Second, most of the time, the most vulnerable demographic groups are the most affected by climate change.

And lastly, climate change is already here. It’s not something far away; it can happen to anybody, and people are already suffering the consequences.

Mongabay: Do you have a behind-the-scenes moment that stands out from working on this story?

Lucía Torres: Reporting from a climate-displaced community in Mexico carries global significance, because the challenges faced by this small town are the direct result of climate change — a crisis we all share responsibility for.

Spending time with the community was essential, given the sensitivity of this story. By sharing meals, late-night conversations and personal experiences, we built a relationship based on trust and reciprocity. This connection allowed for more open and personal interviews, helping us better understand their reality. It was through this mutual exchange that they felt comfortable sharing their stories, which became the heart of the film.

Mongabay: What advice would you give to someone following in your footsteps?

Lucía Torres: Don’t be afraid to try and fail. Failure is not the opposite of success — it’s part of the process. Every attempt, whether it works or not, brings you closer to finding your voice, your style, and your strengths. Keep trying, keep learning, and stay proactive.

Banner image: Lucía Torres posing while the crew frames the side camera for Mongabay’s Against All Odds video series in 2024. Image by Samantha Lee/Mongabay.