I am currently carrying out a PhD at the University of Illinois at Chicago and Field Museum of Natural History as a member of the Mason-Gamer Lab. I am really interested in global patterns of plant diversity
and the drivers of those patterns, as well as the approaches we use to
understand the origins of crops. My PhD research utilizes genetic
methods to classify species diversity and understand evolutionary history of
the Coca family (Erythroxylaceae).
My interests in botany and evolutionary biology have arisen from lifelong exploration of wilderness and fascination with the the diversity of plants (particularly in the tropics). I have conducted botanical research in many regions of the western hemisphere including Denali National Park and Preserve, the western slope of Colorado, and the upper Amazon and Orinoco river basins. In May 2011, I received a B. S. in Biological Sciences with a concentration in Botany from Colorado State University. |
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