Dr. Margaret “Meg” Lowman

MEG LOWMAN

“The Arbornaut”

October 21, 2021
7:30 pm

YouTube streaming link: https://youtu.be/wzxTivbDFoc

Dr. Margaret Lowman, known affectionately throughout the world as “Canopy Meg,” is a global pioneer in forest canopy ecology. She is one of the world’s foremost “arbornauts” — someone who explores and studies the vast forest canopies that make up what Meg has termed the Earth’s “eighth continent.” A tireless educator, strong advocate for girls, women and minorities in science, Meg has published numerous books, is a sustainability advisor, contributes to boards and speaks widely and frequently to diverse groups, schools and international symposia and conferences. Meg describes her passion for the treetops: “Saving trees and all that lives in them. What causes me to leap out of bed each morning is the opportunity to explore, research and conserve global forests; to mentor the next generation (especially women and minorities) in sustainability and forest stewardship; and to educate diverse audiences through storytelling.”

Meg is the author, co-author and editor of nine books and over 150 scientific publications, including the major forest canopy textbooks, Forest Canopies and Methods in Forest Canopy Research as well as field reports such as Life in the Treetops and It’s a Jungle Out There. Her much-anticipated, brand new memoir, The Arbornaut (published August 10, 2021 with Farrar, Straus and Giroux) details her adventures over a lifetime spent exploring the eighth continent of the treetops of forests across nearly all the continents. Nicknamed the “Real-Life Lorax” by National Geographic, in The Arbornaut Canopy Meg takes us on an adventure into the “eighth continent” of the world's treetops, along her journey as a tree scientist, and into climate action.

Lowman is well-known across the globe as an inspiring, motivating, fun, and educational speaker. Her superpower as a speaker is found in her humorous, lively storytelling and in her ability to make complex science and conservation ideas easily understandable to a wide variety of audiences. She has been a prolific writer and speaker over the course of a career committed to building and sharing knowledge of the importance of the biodiversity in the canopies around the world and the critical need to conserve them. Whether in person or virtually, Meg connects to audiences across what she calls the “K through Gray” spectrum — meaning just about everyone.

Meg Lowman’s academic training includes a BA in Biology from Williams College, a Master of Science from Aberdeen University and a Ph.D. in Botany from Sydney University. In addition, she completed the Executive Management Program at the Tuck School of Business and the Aldo Leopold Leadership Program at Stanford, and she was selected as a Fulbright Senior Specialist Scholar for both India and Ethiopia.

Sponsored by the College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, the Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate Education and Research and the Honors Program.

Published on October 21, 2021