The Institute for Society and Genetics (ISG) is proud to announce that Professor Jessica W. Lynch has been awarded the prestigious Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award for her project, “Integrated Conservation Research to Best Protect the Amazon’s Most Endangered Monkey”
In this project Prof. Lynch will work in collaboration with Brazil’s National Primate Center (CENP) in Ananindeua, Pará state, Brazil to determine best practices for environmental enrichment for the only captive population of Cebus kaapori (the Ka’apor capuchin) and to establish an international captive breeding program for this critically endangered species. She also will participate in expeditions to visit the tropical forest zone of the Marajó Archipelago with a team of Brazilian researchers, to locate, study and identify newly found populations of Cebus there, and to learn about local perceptions of and interactions with primates in this remote and largely unstudied region. As such her research project integrates captive and wild primate research in Amazonia in collaboration with a network of Brazilian researchers at CENP and beyond, in order to enhance current actions to best protect this critically endangered primate from extinction.
As a Fulbright Scholar, Professor Lynch will have the opportunity to work collaboratively with international partners in educational, political, cultural, economic, and scientific fields. Her work exemplifies the mission of the Fulbright Program to foster mutual understanding and tackle global challenges through academic exchange. Fulbright alumni have become heads of state, judges, ambassadors, CEOs, and university presidents, as well as leading journalists, artists, scientists, and teachers. They include 62 Nobel Laureates, 95 Pulitzer Prize winners, and thousands of leaders across the private, public and non-profit sectors.
Please join us in congratulating Professor Lynch on this remarkable achievement and in celebrating the impact of her scholarship.