Helia Bravo Hollis

Helia Bravo Hollis was born and raised in Mixcoac, located in present-day Mexico City. Her interest in the study of living beings came from Sunday walks with her parents. She excelled in school from a young age. President Porfirio Díaz gave her recognition for her grades upon her completion of primary school.

The political turmoil during the Mexican Revolution affected her family. Her father, a loyal supporter of Francisco Madero, was killed in 1914, shortly after Madero's assassination.

Despite the conflicts her family faced, Bravo made progress with her studies and entered high school in 1919, attending Saint Ildefonso (National Preparatory High School), in Mexico City. Her teachers included Vicente Lombardo Toledano, Sotero Prieto, Erasmo Castellano, Antonio Caso, and botanist Isaac Ochoterena, who influenced Bravo's interest in the biological sciences.

After finishing high school, Bravo initially continued her studies in medicine. She faced pressure from her family to become a doctor and biology was not yet available as a major at UNAM. However, when an opportunity to study biology arose a year afterwards she transferred to study at UNAM's College of Sciences. In 1927, she became the first certified biologist in Mexico.

In 1931, Bravo obtained a Master of Science degree in Biological Sciences from the College of Philosophy and Letters of UNAM, with the thesis, "Contribution to the knowledge of the cactus of Tehuacán, Puebla." She later received an honorary doctorate from UNAM in 1985.

Helia Bravo Hollis married Jose Clemente Robles, one of Mexico's first neurosurgeons. They divorced after a decade of marriage without having children. Bravo retired at the age of 90 due to her arthritis. She died on September 26, 2001, only four days before her 100th birthday.