Doctoral Program


  1. Does ‘Fear’ Drive Bias in Environmental Scholarship?

    Scientists understand that fear of predation affects animal behavior within landscapes. Now, YSE researchers are using a similar hypothesis — which they are calling “social-ecological landscapes of fear” — to explore the need for conservationists to address negative human histories in their research.
  2. Human-induced Disease Outbreak in Animals Causes Cascading Ecological Effects

    The increased spread of human-induced diseases to wildlife poses a growing challenge for ecosystem conservation. A Yale School of the Environment-led study that investigated the impacts of a mange outbreak that killed vicuñas in a protected area in the Argentine Andes found that it had unique effects on the ecology of the region.
  3. What is Driving Urban Land Expansion?

    Considerable research has been conducted on the growth of urban population, but very little is known about why urban land areas expand. In a recent paper, a YSE-led research team investigated the role of population and economic growth in affecting urban land expansion for more than 300 cities.
  4. Reframing the Controversial Bushmeat Trade

    With the origins of the COVID-19 spurring conversations around the consumption and trade of wild animals from the global South, Yale researchers are taking a closer look to understand the role of “bushmeat” to create a more balanced narrative.