“Our mission is to create fundamental knowledge through innovative science that links insects, landscapes, and their conservation in support of healthy ecosystems and human well being. We strive to create a lab that values and includes people with diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and experiences.”

Our lab seeks to recruit, support, and retain members from diverse backgrounds and groups that have historically been underrepresented in the sciences. As a team, we are committed to creating a learning and working environment where individuals feel supported and invested in the lab mission. To us, this means ensuring our lab is representative of what society looks like today and is active in solving scientific and societal problems that affect all of us. This is a dynamic process, and we are continuously striving to improve our efforts toward these goals.

A primary reason our lab promotes these values is that we believe we have an obligation to each other to lift up voices that have been marginalized in our field and to foster environments that are welcoming, enriching, and enjoyable to be a part of. Beyond this, we simply feel more comfortable and healthy in spaces where everyone can participate equitably. We also recognize that, like ecosystems, teams are strongest when they are diverse. In fact, research suggests that labs can be more creative, productive, and successful when people from diverse backgrounds have a seat at the table.

To ensure that we maintain a commitment to improving ourselves and the environment in which we work, we are involved in ongoing activities as a group, which can be found on our Diversity and Inclusivity Initiatives page.