On behalf of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation and Rosario University we extend a warm welcome to all attendees of the 58th Meeting of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation. For the first time the meeting will be held in Colombia in our host city of Cartagena de Indias, a cultural and historical hub in the country. Colombia is known for its incredible diversity distributed across biomes ranging from the rain forests of Amazonia and Chocó, the great plains of the Llanos, the dry forests of the Caribbean Coast, the deserts of la Guajira and Tatacoa and rising up the mountains through cloud forests and the high alpine paramo. Like many countries in the tropics, Colombia has much to lose if measures are not taken to conserve its biodiversity. We look forward to uniting with you to face the pressing challenges of the Anthropocene together.