HomeI’m a PhD student in Microbiology at the University of Canterbury, funded by Bioprotection Aotearoa in collaboration with UC and Scion. My research explores pathogen threats in nurseries as a pathway for introducing diseases into restoration areas planted with indigenous tree species. I’m particularly interested in how emerging pathogens affect restoration success and in the role nursery plants may play as potential sources. My broader research interests span molecular plant pathology, disease diagnostics, and plant–pathogen interactions.
I completed my BSc in Agriculture, majoring in Plant Pathology, at the University of the Philippines Los Baños in 2018. Through the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master’s programme, I earned an MSc in Crop Protection from Georg-August-Universität Göttingen (Germany) in 2023, and a Master Universitario Erasmus Mundus en Sanidad Vegetal en Agricultura Sostenible from Universitat Politècnica de València (Spain) in 2024.
Outside of research, I live by the phrase Amor Fati—to embrace every event as part of the journey, keep showing up, and welcome the learning process.