Biography

Cooperation is important for the evolution of many species, allowing them to persist in otherwise hostile environmental conditions. As an undergraduate at Princeton, I cultivated an interest in the evolution of cooperative behavior through my research on three avian species. During my PhD in Zoology as a Gates Cambridge Scholar, I hope to uncover the impacts of cooperation on biodiversity using burying beetles as a model study system. Not only do burying beetles provide essential ecosystem services such as returning bioavailable nutrients to the soil, but they can also help us understand how social behavior might influence biodiversity on a genetic and phenotypic scale. By studying wild beetle populations in Cambridge, I also hope to learn about drivers of local adaptation in a fragmented habitat, which can inform us about factors that allow species to adapt to human-induced environmental change. I believe that the biodiversity crisis is one of the most important challenges facing humanity today; my work will contribute to meaningful solutions to preserve the well-being of humans and the ecosystems in which we live. I am honored to be joining a community of scholars committed to improving the lives of beings around the world.

Previous Education

Princeton University Ecology & Evolutionary Biology 2022