Diego is a Biologist from the Pontifical Xavierian University at Bogotá, with a Master’s in Environmental Sciences from the Australian National University; and a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from Monash University. He was awarded the Mollie Holman Medal for the best doctoral thesis from the Faculty of Sciences at Monash University in 2009. In 2010, he was the winner of the Whitley Award, known as the Oscars of conservation. He has been actively working on sea turtle research and conservation in Colombia for over 25 years.

He has been the Executive Director of the Research Center for Environmental Management and Development (CIMAD) based in Cali, Colombia, and he is a recognized member of the international scientific community. He is currently the Vicepresident for the Eastern Pacific of the Marine Turtle Specialist Group IUCN-SSC, a member of the Advisory Committee of the Inter-American Convention for the Protection and Conservation of Sea Turtles (IAC), and the Coordinator of the Species Program of WWF for Latin America and the Caribbean.