I am a biological anthropologist, tropical ecologist, and conservation biologist primarily interested in the ecology and conservation of vertebrates and tropical forests. I am also keenly interested in the analysis and display of quantitative information.
My principal research areas are the ecology, evolution, and conservation of tropical vertebrates and their rainforest habitats. The majority of my empirical work is based on data collected in and around Gunung Palung National Park, West Kalimantan, where I have worked since 1996.
I am also very fortunate to have a wonderful group of students in my lab who are working on a variety of different questions and species at sites around the world, which ensures I am always in over my head with at least one topic.
From 2007-2020 I directed the One Forest Project, a group that integrated ecological monitoring, collaborative conservation research, community outreach, and capacity-building activities in the tropical forests in and around Gunung Palung National Park. Our partners in these endeavors were indigenous field researchers, citizen-scientists from local communities, the public in villages surrounding GPNP, members of local and international conservation NGOs, Indonesian and international students and scientists, and staff from GPNP and other national parks in Borneo. In late 2020 my team and I ceased our continuous monitoring of weather, phenology, and vertebrate populations at Cabang Panti. I am now working with the Gunung Palung National Park Bureau to monitor wildlife populations and ecological conditions at ten sampling sites located around the park. I am also working on conservation and capacity-building initiatives at several other sites in Indonesia.
My formal academic appointment is split between the Department of Anthropology (where I currently serve as Associate Chair) and the Program in the Environment at the University of Michigan, where I am also affiliated with the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, the Program in Computing for the Arts and Sciences, and the School of Environment and Sustainability.
I am also an Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of Biology and Agriculture, Universitas Nasional, Indonesia.
I am committed to helping my undergraduate and graduate students prepare themselves for careers in the modern workforce, and therefore stay up to date on current developments in programming, data analytics, and Gen AI. Recently I have earned Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced Badges in GenAI from the University of Michigan Information and Technology Services and Google Professional Certificates in Data Analytics, Advanced Data Analytics, and AI Essentials through Coursera.
I am also certified as a Wilderness First Responder through Wilderness Medical Training Center International, and have completed Red Cross certifications in Adult First Aid/CPR/AED and Wilderness and Remote First Aid.
