Patricia Wright
Encyclopedia
Patricia C. Wright is the Executive Director of the Institute for the Conservation of Tropical Environments and Professor at Stony Brook University in New York. Dr. Wright, a MacArthur Fellow, has been active in research and conservation in Madagascar since 1985. In 1986, Dr. Wright and her colleagues discovered a new species of lemur, the Golden Bamboo Lemur near the small town of Ranomafana in the southeastern rain forest of Madagascar. The Golden Bamboo Lemur is considered one of the most endangered primates on earth. Dr. Wright lists the creation in 1991 of the 43,500 hectare Ranomafana National Park
among her greatest accomplishments. In 1995, Dr. Wright was honored to receive a knighthood from the Government of Madagascar (Officier de l’Ordre National), in recognition of her years of hard work in collaboration with Malagasy scientists and government officials. She is an AAAS Fellow, a Hauptman-Woodward Medal award winner, has received honorary degrees from the University of Antananarivo (Honoris Causa) and Hood College
. Dr. Wright received a B.A. in Biology from Hood College and a Ph.D. in Anthropology from City University of New York
. She has been on the Board of the Wenner-Gren Foundation, The Duke Lemur Center and the National Geographic Society Committee for Research and Exploration and the NGS Conservation Trust. Her recent book Madagascar: The Forest of Our Ancestors has a strong conservation component. Dr. Wright has spearheaded Malagasy Biodiversity research and the founding of the Centre ValBio (CVB) Research Campus in 2003. CVB is located adjacent to Ranomafana National Park near the town of Ranomafana, Madagascar. The campus provides modern research facilities steps away from a unique tropical rainforest and has the multi-faceted mission of biodiversity research, conservation and humanitarian outreach.
Dr. Wright's research interests include:
Ranomafana National Park
Ranomafana National Park is located in the southeastern part of Madagascar in Haute Matsiatra and Vatovavy-Fitovinany. With more than 41,600 hectares of moist forest climate, the park is home to several rare species of flora and fauna such as the lemur...
among her greatest accomplishments. In 1995, Dr. Wright was honored to receive a knighthood from the Government of Madagascar (Officier de l’Ordre National), in recognition of her years of hard work in collaboration with Malagasy scientists and government officials. She is an AAAS Fellow, a Hauptman-Woodward Medal award winner, has received honorary degrees from the University of Antananarivo (Honoris Causa) and Hood College
Hood College
Hood College is a co-educational liberal arts college located in Frederick, Maryland. The college serves approximately 1,050 graduate students and more than 1,400 undergraduate students.-Early History :...
. Dr. Wright received a B.A. in Biology from Hood College and a Ph.D. in Anthropology from City University of New York
City University of New York
The City University of New York is the public university system of New York City, with its administrative offices in Yorkville in Manhattan. It is the largest urban university in the United States, consisting of 23 institutions: 11 senior colleges, six community colleges, the William E...
. She has been on the Board of the Wenner-Gren Foundation, The Duke Lemur Center and the National Geographic Society Committee for Research and Exploration and the NGS Conservation Trust. Her recent book Madagascar: The Forest of Our Ancestors has a strong conservation component. Dr. Wright has spearheaded Malagasy Biodiversity research and the founding of the Centre ValBio (CVB) Research Campus in 2003. CVB is located adjacent to Ranomafana National Park near the town of Ranomafana, Madagascar. The campus provides modern research facilities steps away from a unique tropical rainforest and has the multi-faceted mission of biodiversity research, conservation and humanitarian outreach.
Dr. Wright's research interests include:
- Tropical Biology and conservation
- Primate behavior, ecology, and biology
- Genetic consequences of dispersal in primates
- Monogamy, parental care, infant development, and female dominance in primates
- Demography of the Milne-Edwards' sifaka (Propithecus edwardsi) in Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar
- Effects of predation and parasites on primate behavior
- Effects of aging on wild primate behavior; including Alzheimer’s in Microcebus
- Conservation Science
- Developing medicines from rain-forest products
- Effects of climate change on Madagascar rainforests