DR. CITLALLI MORELOS-JUÁREZ is a primatologist working in the Ecuador’s  Chocó rainforest – one of the world’s last coastal rainforests and a global biodiversity hotspot. Director of the Tesoro Escondido Reserve, she helps protect the habitat of at least 7,000 species of plants and animals, a quarter of which are found nowhere else on earth, in an area highly threatened by timber extraction, monocrops, hunting and mining concessions. She created a parabiologist program that trains, employs and empowers local women to lead and learn about the forest’s ecosystem and sustainability.

Born: 1983

Hometown: Cuernavaca, Mexico

Education: Ph.D. in Biology

Occupation: Primatologist, conservation biologist

Expeditions: Chocó rainforest, Ecuador, one of the planet’s last coastal rainforests

Favorite Places: The forest in Tesoro Escondido, Ecuador, and the beach in Mexico

Best Discoveries: Every day in the forest brings a new discovery!

Favorite Items In The Field: Machete, binoculars, flashlight, a camera

Personal Hero: My mum, an incredibly strong and brave woman

Hobbies: Dancing, trekking, reading, traveling

Website: www.tesororeserve.org

Advice: Follow your heart, protect nature, be ethical and enjoy life.