Jesús Pinto-Ledezma was working on environmental issues to inform policy-making in his home country of Bolivia when his mom first noticed how unhappy his career was making him. “It’s extremely complicated to work with policy-making because there are so many layers of government itself,” says Pinto-Ledezma. It was frustrating to say the least. “I was getting tired of that, so [my mother] told me that maybe I should start looking for another opportunity.” So he took the leap and decided to go to graduate school – instead of working in government, he hoped to focus on generating the knowledge needed to make informed decisions.
Now, as a researcher in evolutionary ecology who recently transitioned into a faculty position in the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior (EEB), Pinto-Ledezma studies the origin, causes, and consequences of biodiversity at global, regional, and local scales. In particular, he’s interested in understanding what evolutionary and ecological factors might drive the distribution of a species (or number of species) and what drivers influence the assembly of ecological communities.
After seven years in Minnesota as a postdoc, he says he’s so glad he took the opportunity to grow and establish his career here. It absolutely made sense to apply for a faculty position – to him, the community and collaborative energy within the college felt healthy, encouraging and meaningful. He also loves how the change of seasons in the midwest reminds him nothing is permanent – if he meets a challenge, it will pass.
“The last time my mom came here was in May,” he says. “She always tells me the truth. And she looked at me and said, ‘you are finally happy.’ And she was right. I feel like home.”
