Exequiel Ezcurra, Ph.D.

Research

Exequiel Ezcurra directs the University of California Institute for Mexico and the United States and is a professor of ecology at the University of California at Riverside. He used his Pew fellowship to develop a regional network of scientists who work in close collaboration with conservation groups, regional business leaders, and local governments to conserve Mexico’s Sea of Cortez. The project analyzed current ecological knowledge, conservation status, and threats to the biodiversity of the region through the search for general principles and predictive patterns. As a result, the collaboration identified critical sustainability problems and discussed them with policymakers and resource managers. The key difficulties faced in reversing the trend of environmental and resource degradation have been the absence of a well-developed, consolidated relationship between environmental scientists and decision-makers, the lack of a multidisciplinary approach, and too little effort made to address large-scale, ecosystem-based problems. Ezcurra’s research and network of conservation groups are working to turn the tide. To learn more about Ezcurra, visit his bio online. http://www.worldwildlife.org/leaders/exequiel-ezcurra--2