Kerry Grimm

In 2024, Dr. Kerry Grimm joined the National Audubon Society to develop its Conservation Social Science research program. As the Director of Conservation Social Science, she leads and conducts social science research that helps advance Audubon’s new strategic Flight Plan, including its habitat, climate, and community building milestones. She integrates social science into Audubon’s conservation activities and serves as an internal subject matter expert on social science best practices.

Kerry has almost 20 years of experience conducting conservation social science research aimed at protecting biodiversity and supporting people’s livelihoods. She has focused on private landowner and community conservation; collaboration and knowledge co-production; and equitable and just inclusion of community engagement, knowledge, and needs in conservation initiatives. Her work spans a broad range of habitats in the US, Latin America and the Caribbean and has been published in peer-reviewed journals, books, and reports. Her desire to support inclusive conservation is evidenced by the recent guide that she led, in partnership with the Global Mangrove Alliance, Including local ecological knowledge in mangrove conservation & restoration: A best-practice guide for practitioners and researchers.

Before joining Audubon, Kerry was Director of Social Science at the nonprofit Ecoculture and principal at her own social science research consultancy, Human-Environment Connections, where collaborated with international and local NGOs, academic institutions, and government agencies. She previously taught environmental studies and social science courses at Oregon State University (OSU) and Northern Arizona University, where she is currently adjunct faculty. Kerry received her Ph.D. in Environmental Science: Social Science from OSU in 2010. For her dissertation, she researched conservation volunteer tourism at an Ecuadorian cloud forest reserve, exploring how different perceptions of conservation can impact both on-the-ground work and relationships among participants. She holds an MS in English from the University of Nevada, Reno, and a BA from Binghamton University in both Environmental Studies: Ecology and Literature & Creative Writing.

Kerry lives in Flagstaff, AZ with her husband and two children, where she enjoys camping, hiking, climbing, gardening, yoga, and cooking—but she’ll never turn down an opportunity to travel and learn about new places and cultures.