Shahid Naeem

Shahid Naeem is an American ecologist and conservation biologist who is a Lenfest Distinguished professor and chair in the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology at Columbia University. Naeem considered becoming a doctor or illustrator, but ultimately decided to pursue a career in science as an ecologist and professor.

Career and research Naeem worked as a faculty member at the University of Minnesota and the University of Washington before he joined the Columbia University faculty in 2003.

He operates an ecology research laboratory at Columbia University with Matt Palmer, dubbed “Ecology With No Apology.” They have three lab mottos: “Never apologize for the truth! Eschew obfuscation! Do what you gotta do and stay fly!” He believes that biodiversity loss is the most significant impediment to environmental sustainability and ecological health.

Naeem's research was prominent in shifting ecologists' focus on the importance of biodiversity conservation for the sake of conservation, to an expanded perspective that emphasizes the importance of biodiversity in maintaining ecosystem health and stability. Naeem is an Aldo Leopold Leadership fellow and Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. 1985/1986 - Noyes Tropical Research Fellowship 1987 - Driscoll Fellowship, University of Minnesota 1988 - Murray F. Buell Award for best Graduate Student Paper at Ecological Society of America Meetings 1995 - George Mercer Award for Best Ecological Paper by Younger Ecologist, Ecological Society of America 2003 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science 2003 - Elected, Member at Large, Ecological Society of America 2003 - ISI Highly Cited Author 2008 - Lenfest Prize, Columbia University 2014/15/16 - ISI Highly Cited Author

Naeem's research from Columbia University has been funded by the National Science Foundation:

2013 NSF Grant, Columbia Technology, Research, and Ecology Exchange for Students. 2013 NSF Grant, Columbia Dissertation Research: The Impacts of Farmer Adaptation to Climate Variability on Groundwater Salinity and Soil Health in Gujarat, India. 2014 NSF Grant, Gk-12 Columbia University Learning From Earth and Ecological Field Studies (LEEFS) Graduate Fellowship Program.

Publications

Ecosystem Functioning, and Human Well-Being (2009) Sustainable Food Production: A primer for the 21st Century and Biodiversity (2021)

Naeem is the author of a Sustainable Food Production: A primer for the 21st Century and Biodiversity, Ecosystem Functioning, and Human Well-Being, and has published over 100 scientific articles. Ecosystem Functioning, and Human Well-Being complies and summarizes over 900 scientific studies on how biodiversity loss impacts the environment and human society. He has also been interviewed by establishments such as The Atlantic and Landscape News to provide explanations how biodiversity loss impacts environmental health. He worked part time as a laboratory technician in an ecology lab through the University of California, Berkeley while pursuing a career as an illustrator. His experience in the laboratory convinced him to pursue a Ph.D. in science and education (which he later switched to a Ph.D. in zoology). Despite choosing to pursue science over illustration, Naeem sees an interconnectedness between nature, science, and artistic expression.