Derek Lee and Monica Bond, Wildlife biologists, activists and Penn State professors with “True Tall Tales from Tanzania”
Date: April 20, 2023
Location: Penn Stater Conference Center, President’s Hall
“True Tall Tales from Tanzania: Giraffe Science and Reasons for Hope in the Biodiversity and Climate Crises”
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Derek E. Lee, is a wildlife biologist and activist-scientist with 20 years of experience in the field. He studied Cultural Anthropology for his bachelors degree from the University of California at Santa Barbara, received a masters of science degree in Natural Resource Management from Humboldt State University, and a PhD in Biology from Dartmouth College. In 2010 he co-founded the Wild Nature Institute with his partner, Monica Bond, where they study the ecology of endangered wildlife and inspire actions to protect wild nature. In 2011 he established the first long-term study of wild giraffes, and since then he has been living and working full-time in Tanzania. Lee and Bond recently created a giraffe-themed environmental education curriculum of materials and learning activities that have been used by more than 200 teachers and has reached more than 25,000 children across Tanzania. He was a Fulbright Scholar in 2012, and is the author of more than 40 scientific publications on wildlife ecology. Currently, in addition to being Principal Scientist at Wild Nature Institute, he is Associate Research Professor of Biology at Penn State University.
Please join us as Dr. Lee will describe his journey to becoming a giraffe biologist using high tech, big data tools in one of the world’s largest wildlife conservation research programs. He will also provide hopeful examples of people, government, and industry working together to find integrated solutions to biodiversity, climate, and economic issues.