Joy is a plant taxonomist by training. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Management from Visayas State University (VSU) and a Master’s degree in Forestry from the University of the Philippines-Los Baños. During her training, she was exposed to forest tree identification and community forest management in different regions of the Philippines. Her current interests focus on the conservation of Philippine dipterocarps. Joy is happy to be back at VSU, where she continues her work in disseminating Rainforestation, a restoration strategy that utilizes native forest tree species.