My name is Gustavo J Diaz Torres. I was born Bayamon and was raised in Orocovis, Puerto Rico. My hobbies consist of hiking, planning trips that I can’t afford and playing video games. I went to the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez Campus, I majored in horticulture and graduated in December of 2021. In January 2021, I started a Pathways Internship with the NRCS working with the Soils Team and Ecological Science Department for the Mayaguez Field Office. I learned a great deal about conservation by working alongside Jayson Mas, Edrick Marrero and Samuel Rios.

Once I finished my internship, I accepted a Soil Conservationist position in Havre, Montana where I worked with grazing, cover crop, weed treatment contracts while surviving 2 winters of -40° F (with a windchill of -80°F, yes, its colder than what you’d imagine). Late in 2023 I accepted a Soil Conservationist position in Ellsworth, Maine where I’ve been working with and helping blueberry producers move away from burning the blueberry fields by implementing what we call the “Trifecta”, which consist of Obstruction Removal, Mulching and Field Emission Reduction (fancy name for “mowing”) and I’m loving every minute of it.