Profile of Dr. Margaret Lowman

New College Of Florida
5800 Bayshore Road
Sarasota, FL 34243
Phone: (941) 359-4647
canopymeg@aol.com

Current Position: Director of Environmental Initiatives and Professor, Biology and Environmental Studies Departments, New College of Florida

Education: Ph.D., Botany, University of Sydney

Dr. Lowman climbs trees for a living, studying the plants and insects that inhabit forest canopies in the tropics of Australia, Peru, Africa, the Americas, and the South Pacific.  Rainforest treetops are estimated to contain nearly half the total biodiversity of the planet, and Dr. Lowman has used slingshots, ropes, canopy walkways, construction cranes, and even hot air balloons to reach these remote locales, catalogue their diversity and study their ecology.  In addition to her teaching career, she worked for 11 years as Director of Research and Conservation and then Chief Executive Officer of Selby Botanical Gardens, an institution that specializes in tropical plants.  She also served as Chief Scientist for the Jason Project, an international program that uses satellite and internet technology to bring K-12 classrooms into direct real-time contact with research scientists in the neotropics.  She has written environmental education curricula for the Department of Health Education and Welfare and the National Science Teacher’s association.  Dr. Lowman is the recipient of several national awards for conservation education.  Currently, Dr. Lowman serves as Vice President of the Ecological Society of America, and Fellow and Vice President of Research/Education for The Explorers Club.