Joshua Plotnik

Lead, Animal Behaviour WG

Josh is an Associate Professor of Psychology and Director of the Animal Behavior and Conservation Graduate Programs at Hunter College, City University of New York. He has been a member of the SG (formerly TF) since 2017.

His work focuses on incorporating nonhuman animal perspectives into human–wildlife conflict (HWC) by encouraging stakeholders to consider how animal ecology, behaviour, and cognition can inform the development of mitigation strategies. He has studied Asian elephants in Thailand for nearly 20 years, with particular interests in cooperative decision-making, problem solving, and the use of olfaction to navigate complex, human-modified environments. Josh is the Chair of the SG’s Animal Behaviour Working Group and studies the interaction between elephant decision-making and human–elephant conflict (HEC) in Southeast Asia. He is also a member of the IUCN Asian Elephant Specialist Group and leads a nonprofit organization focused on conservation education, Think Elephants International.