I am a botanist dedicated to understanding global plant diversity and applying that knowledge to its conservation and restoration.

Through targeted research, I work to advance scientific methodologies, document and preserve understudied forests, and uncover the diversity and evolutionary history of specific plant lineages.

These interests stem from a lifelong fascination with plants, shaped by wilderness exploration and a deep curiosity about ecological interactions.

My research program is organized around three core themes that integrate diverse approaches across botanical science.

First, I conduct systematic research on the Coca family of plants, including evolutionary studies on the origins of domestication and diversification of the coca crops. This is a central focus my current Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at the Harvard University Herbaria, but I also lead phylogeographic projects in the Dryas and Pedicularis clades—see more at Research.

It is an honor and a responsibility to investigate the botany and cultural history of coca. For many South Americans, the coca leaf is a sacred gift from Mother Earth and the single most important physical material in their lives. For others, it represents profound violence and social upheaval. It may be the most interesting plant in the world. Learn more on the Coca Leaf page and from my collaborators at Proyecto Khoka. 

Second, I work to advance our ability to "read" plants using leaf reflectance spectroscopy, which captures information from the visible and near-infrared regions of light reflected off leaves. This technique offers rich insight into plant form and function, enabling the characterization of traits and the identification of species. This focus was born via my first postdoc in the Ree Lab at the Field Museum in collaboration with Peter Nelson, Dudu Meireles, and continues now in my work with Jeannine Cavender-Bares and the NSF ASCEND Biology Integration Institute.

Finally,I co-lead a collaborative effort to inventory the flora and conserve the last surviving cloud forest fragments at Cerro Centinela in Western Ecuador, a biologically rich and historically pivotal site in western Ecuador. Please check out the '¡Viva Centinela!' page for news, information, and opportunities to support or join our team.