How can photosynthetic algae and invertebrate animals benefit each other? What can we learn from marine symbiosis to make human agriculture more efficient and human relationships more mutually beneficial? Questions like these feed Dr. Jingchun Li’s continuous curiosity. Inspired by a children’s book series, she became fascinated with biology as a kid and collected unusual pets to observe at home. She now weaves together field biology, lab research, museum collections, teaching, and lessons from being the mom of young children to answer scientific questions about earth’s biodiversity. Dr. Jingchun Li is the Curator of Invertebrates and Assistant Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Colorado Boulder. She researches the biodiversity and evolution of invertebrates, as well as biological interactions like predation, parasitism, and mutualism. In working with university students, she aims to facilitate critical thinking and a deeper awareness of earth’s biodiversity of animals.