Dr Michael (Mike) Weston is an Associate Professor at Deakin University where he teaches and conducts research on plovers and their conservation, and teaches into the Wildlife and Conservation Biology degree. He is solution- rather than problem-focused, and adopts a practical, science-based approach to solving biodiversity conservation issues, being inclusive of stakeholders and embracing citizen science. Mike’s commitment to shorebird, and especially plover, conservation is life-long. In his earlier career he spent 17 years working in the not-for-profit conservation sector. His PhD was on the threatened Hooded Plover, and he continues to help in the conservation of this species decades later. At Deakin, he relishes the opportunity to work with young conservation biologists as they establish their career and bestow benefits upon the ecosystems they study.