John H. Vandermeer

John Vandermeer is the Asa Gray Distinguished University Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and the Arthur F. Thurnau Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at University of Michigan. He has been involved in research and teaching in food and agriculture related topics for the past 40 years. His research has concentrated on the ecology of the coffee agroecosystem in Mexico, elaborating the complex ecological structures involved in complicated dynamics of the pest control system there. He has championed practical application of ecological theory throughout his career to solve real-world agricultural problems which improved the economic quality of life and food security for small farmers in the neotropics, particularly in Nicaragua.

He has authored 15 books and more than 200 publications on complex species interactions and dynamics in ecological communities; on experimental and theoretical studies of ecologically sustainable agriculture, particularly in tropical agroecosystems; and on the impact of natural and anthropogenic disturbance on tropical forest biodiversity. Vandermeer is a founding member of the New World Agriculture and Ecology Group. He holds a Ph.D. from University of Michigan.