Serban Proches is Professor of Biogeography at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban, South Africa, a city designated in 2017 by Husqvarna as world’s greenest. His research spans ecology and biogeography from local to global scales. He has worked on plants, beetles, mites and vertebrates in Africa, Europe and Southeast Asia. He has taught environmental science to over 5000 students from diverse backgrounds. His teaching employs classic methods, as well as field trips, both in-person and virtual – to create an appreciation of our natural environment.