Patricio Mena

I was born in Quito, Ecuador, 100 years after the publication of Charles Darwin's great book, The Origin of Species. I don't think that this had much influence on my decision to study and work in biology, but it is a fact. My professional life has passed between two fundamental interests. On the one hand, the aforementioned biology, which evolved from an interest in basic sciences to something more dedicated to the conservation and management of biodiversity and natural resources, and communication, especially related to science communication. I studied biology at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, where I graduated with a thesis comparing tropical high Andean ecosystems called páramos with equivalent ecosystems in tropical East Africa. I did a Masters in Botany at the City University of New York and then a Masters in Journalism at the University of Wales in Cardiff. I did a PhD in Environmental Science at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. I have always enjoyed reading and writing. I've mostly written essays on conservation, music and languages, but I have a couple of short stories and I'm not giving up hope of ever writing a novel or two. I love music and can say that I am a competent performer of the Peruvian cajón, and I am also a fan of photography, especially of nature and cities.I twice won the prize for the best scientific work of the municipality of Quito as co-author of a book on Ecuador's biodiversity in 2015 and as co-editor of a book on Ecuador's páramos in 2023. I am married and have a son.