Eli Greenbaum

I am a professor of evolutionary genetics at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), with a research focus on evolutionary biology and herpetology of Central Africa. I also serve as Director of the UTEP Biodiversity Collections. Since 2007, I have led 11 expeditions to Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, and Uganda, where I have searched for new species of amphibians and reptiles. With my all-Congolese research team and UTEP students, I have collected and analyzed thousands of samples for DNA research, and discovered scores of new species to science, over 30 of which have been named in one of my 125 peer-reviewed scientific publications. My research has bolstered efforts by the Congolese government and American wildlife organizations to establish new reserves and national parks in an effort to protect more of DR Congo’s unique and threatened biodiversity. My discoveries have been covered by CNN, Newsweek, The Washington Post, NBC News, National Geographic Daily News, Africa Geographic Magazine, Reptiles Magazine, and The Huffington Post.