My passion is nature and my mission is to stop biodiversity loss. To tackle this major challenge, I study the distribution and evolution of life on Earth and how best to protect, restore and sustainably use biodiversity, and I develop methods to speed up scientific discovery. My focus is on the tropics, where most species occur and the threats are most acute. My research to date has encompassed the study of the formation, extinction, and migration of species, particularly teasing apart the relative roles of abiotic (e.g. climate, landscape) and biotic (e.g. competition, adaptation) drivers of biodiversity change through space and time. I am also engaged in interactions with society and scientists across disciplines, with the main goal of increasing the knowledge, awareness and protection of biological diversity around the world.