Janelle Chanona | Oceana

Janelle Chanona

Vice President, Belize

Executive Committee

A veteran broadcast journalist turned marine policy advocate, Janelle Chanona has led Oceana’s team in Belize since January 2014.

She is convinced that the quality of Belize’s future is rooted in the democratic stewardship of its marine assets, which directly benefits tens of thousands of Belizeans daily with healthy seafood, stable jobs and a unique way of life.

Chanona leads Oceana’s campaigns in Belize – which center on protecting the right to participate in the decision-making processes that govern national development via natural resource management as well as efforts to promote responsible fishing practices in Belize’s waters.

In 2022, registered non-governmental organizations in Belize elected Janelle their non-partisan representative in the Senate. From this progressive parliamentary platform, Janelle supports national efforts at good governance, transparency and accountability. Via her parliamentary role, Janelle also Chairs Belize’s Women Parliamentary Caucus.

A Chevening scholar, Janelle holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications from Loyola College in Maryland, Baltimore, USA and a Master’s Degree in Investigative Journalism from Nottingham Trent University in the United Kingdom.

Janelle grounds herself by walking barefoot in the shadow of the Sleeping Giant or disappearing beneath the waves offshore Placencia.