Tropical rain forests harbour the highest levels of terrestrial biodiversity, yet the evolutionary processes that have generated and maintain this extraordinary richness remain incompletely understood. Addressing this challenge requires large-scale evolutionary frameworks and the integration of new data sources and technologies. I present results from the ERC-funded GLOBAL project (2020–2026), which combines phylogenomics, spatial modelling, and emerging analytical approaches to build a comprehensive view of tropical rain forest biodiversity. Using the pantropical plant family Annonaceae (≈2,500 species), we assembled a near-complete phylogenomic framework by sequencing over 80% of species, providing one of the most detailed evolutionary reconstructions for a major tropical lineage. This effort was made possible through a large international consortium of researchers from the Global North and South. This genomic backbone reveals a strongly dynamic history of Annonaceae. Rather than steady species accumulation, we uncover rate-heterogeneous dynamics, with alternating phases of diversification and decline since the mid-Cretaceous. Diversification is further shaped by region-specific environmental factors, leaving contrasting evolutionary signatures across the tropics. We combined then combined phylogenomic data with spatially explicit models including more than 100 environmental and evolutionary variables. Our results show that no single factor explains Annonaceae species richness; instead, diversity emerges from interacting evolutionary and ecological processes. We identify geographically disjunct regions where similar combinations of drivers structure biodiversity, despite diverging from global patterns. Beyond reconstructing the past, we assess the future of tropical biodiversity. By coupling phylogenomic and functional data, we show that extinction risk is non-random within Annonaceae, with disproportionate loss of deep evolutionary lineages and key functional strategies, potentially reshaping phylogenetic and ecological structure. Finally, I highlight how emerging technologies are expanding biodiversity research. Near-Infrared Spectroscopy enables rapid, non-destructive inference of species identity, functional traits, and DNA extraction success from herbarium specimens, opening new avenues for their use.
