Professor Amy Dickman
Specialising in human-wildlife conflict, I have worked in Africa for over 20 years, and have published over 80 scientific papers and book chapters on large carnivore ecology and conservation. I have an MSc from Oxford University and a PhD from University College London and am the Kaplan Senior Research Fellow in Field Conservation at Oxford University.
In 2009 I established the Ruaha Carnivore Project (RCP) based in southern Tanzania. This vast landscape has the highest rate of lion killing documented in East Africa and is one of the most important areas in the world for lions, leopards and cheetahs. Our Tanzanian team is researching the ecology of these vital populations and working to reduce the pressing threat of human-carnivore conflict. The project reduces attacks on livestock and provides local communities with benefits from living with wildlife, with a focus on providing access to veterinary medicine and improving local schools and clinics. It has been an extremely challenging endeavour given the remote location and the initial hostility of the local tribes engaged in lion killing. The many innovative programmes developed by the Project over the past decade have had huge impact: livestock attacks have been reduced by over 60% in the core study area and lion killings have been reduced by over 80% as wildlife is now recognised a key driver of local development. In 2020 this work was extended to Tanzania’s Selous-Nyerere ecosystem, a vast landscape thought to hold the largest lion population in Africa.
In 2021 RCP merged with Lion Landscapes to achieve even greater conservation impact by sharing knowledge. The new organisation is run jointly with Dr Alayne Cotterill, another Oxford alumna, and has a team of 100 working across four key landscapes in three countries. The new Lion Landscapes organisation is a registered charity and is affiliated with the University of Oxford.
Current post and employment history
2020 – present Associate Director, Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), Department of Zoology, University of Oxford
2009 – present Kaplan Senior Research Fellow in Felid Conservation, Pembroke College and Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), Department of Zoology, University of Oxford
1999 - 2004 Senior Research Assistant, Cheetah Conservation Fund, Namibia
1997 – 2002 Research Assistant, Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, University of Oxford
Education
2005-2008 University College, London: PhD, Biological Anthropology
2004-2005 University of Oxford, U.K.: M.Sc. Biodiversity, Conservation & Management (Distinction)
1994-1997 University of Liverpool, U.K.: B.Sc. (Hons) Zoology, Class 2(1)
Honours, awards and recognition
2020 Chosen as one of National Geographic’s ‘Women of Impact’
2020 Honoured as a ‘Change-Maker’ by Empowers Africa
2020 Selected as a Tusk Conservation Hero
2018 Won the Cincinnati Zoo Wildlife Conservation Award
2017 Recognised with a Vice-Chancellor’s Public Engagement with Research Award
2016 Won the St Louis Zoo Conservation Award
2014 Runner up, Tusk Award for Conservation in Africa
2013 Selected as James Marsh Professor-at-Large, University of Vermont
2011 Rabinowitz-Kaplan Prize for the Next Generation in Wild Cat Conservation
2008 Selected as one of the Courvoisier Future 500 ‘Top 50’ in Science
I have authored over 80 peer-reviewed publications, 6 book chapters and 4 chapters in international peer-reviewed reports.
A complete list of publications, with article links, is available on Google Scholar https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=lhOL4iAAAAAJ&hl=en
Professor Amy Dickman
Specialising in human-wildlife conflict, I have worked in Africa for over 20 years, and have published over 80 scientific papers and book chapters on large carnivore ecology and conservation. I have an MSc from Oxford University and a PhD from University College London and am the Kaplan Senior Research Fellow in Field Conservation at Oxford University.
In 2009 I established the Ruaha Carnivore Project (RCP) based in southern Tanzania. This vast landscape has the highest rate of lion killing documented in East Africa and is one of the most important areas in the world for lions, leopards and cheetahs. Our Tanzanian team is researching the ecology of these vital populations and working to reduce the pressing threat of human-carnivore conflict. The project reduces attacks on livestock and provides local communities with benefits from living with wildlife, with a focus on providing access to veterinary medicine and improving local schools and clinics. It has been an extremely challenging endeavour given the remote location and the initial hostility of the local tribes engaged in lion killing. The many innovative programmes developed by the Project over the past decade have had huge impact: livestock attacks have been reduced by over 60% in the core study area and lion killings have been reduced by over 80% as wildlife is now recognised a key driver of local development. In 2020 this work was extended to Tanzania’s Selous-Nyerere ecosystem, a vast landscape thought to hold the largest lion population in Africa.
In 2021 RCP merged with Lion Landscapes to achieve even greater conservation impact by sharing knowledge. The new organisation is run jointly with Dr Alayne Cotterill, another Oxford alumna, and has a team of 100 working across four key landscapes in three countries. The new Lion Landscapes organisation is a registered charity and is affiliated with the University of Oxford.
Current post and employment history
2020 – present Associate Director, Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), Department of Zoology, University of Oxford
2009 – present Kaplan Senior Research Fellow in Felid Conservation, Pembroke College and Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), Department of Zoology, University of Oxford
1999 - 2004 Senior Research Assistant, Cheetah Conservation Fund, Namibia
1997 – 2002 Research Assistant, Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, University of Oxford
Education
2005-2008 University College, London: PhD, Biological Anthropology
2004-2005 University of Oxford, U.K.: M.Sc. Biodiversity, Conservation & Management (Distinction)
1994-1997 University of Liverpool, U.K.: B.Sc. (Hons) Zoology, Class 2(1)
Honours, awards and recognition
2020 Chosen as one of National Geographic’s ‘Women of Impact’
2020 Honoured as a ‘Change-Maker’ by Empowers Africa
2020 Selected as a Tusk Conservation Hero
2018 Won the Cincinnati Zoo Wildlife Conservation Award
2017 Recognised with a Vice-Chancellor’s Public Engagement with Research Award
2016 Won the St Louis Zoo Conservation Award
2014 Runner up, Tusk Award for Conservation in Africa
2013 Selected as James Marsh Professor-at-Large, University of Vermont
2011 Rabinowitz-Kaplan Prize for the Next Generation in Wild Cat Conservation
2008 Selected as one of the Courvoisier Future 500 ‘Top 50’ in Science
I have authored over 80 peer-reviewed publications, 6 book chapters and 4 chapters in international peer-reviewed reports.
A complete list of publications, with article links, is available on Google Scholar https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=lhOL4iAAAAAJ&hl=en