Dr. José Sarukhán Kermez

May 9, 2022February 19, 2024 Christina Ballew

National Commission for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity (CONABIO) – Mexico

José Sarukhán Kermez is a plant biologist and ecologist and is recognized for his ability to translate scientific knowledge into action by creating and strengthening educational and policy institutions which have rallied the public to protect biodiversity in Mexico, with ripples that have spread worldwide. Often referred to as the founding father of ecological research in Mexico, Professor José Sarukhán is among the best-known ecologists and conservation scientists in the world.

He is currently the National Coordinator for Mexico’s National Commission for Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity (CONABIO), which inventories and monitors Mexican animal and plant species and is one of the first such agencies in the world.

Sarukhán received his doctorate at the University of Wales in the UK, working with leading plant population biologist, John Harper. Their research into buttercup demography (the likelihood of a seed growing into a mature, fruitful plant) is considered classic work in ecology. It is cited frequently in both specialized literature and general ecology textbooks and was considered by the Journal of Ecology as one of the 10 most influential papers of the last century in plant population ecology.

A known expert in Mexican biology, Sarukhán’s main interests include tropical ecology, plant population ecology, and the systems ecology of both temperate and tropical ecosystems, as well as training and education and has published over 110 research papers and authored and co-authored several books.

Dr. Sarukhán has been the driving force for the main ecological research group in Mexico and of the Ecology Institute at UNAM, which has >50 researchers and has produced >160 Ph.D. students, and for the Ecology Center in Morelia, Michoacán (CIECO).

He helped establish the National Commission on Biodiversity of México and was appointed as National Coordinator of CONABIO in 1992. He received the 2017 Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement.

Now, one of Sarukhán’s core focuses is citizen science. In the true spirit of bringing science to the people, CONABIO’s biodiversity database is publicly available on the internet, with hundreds of thousands of people accessing its information. Citizens can upload photographs that track all kinds of natural resources – from monitoring native plants to counting migratory birds – allowing anyone to contribute to scientific understanding. Sarukhán is extremely proud that in the past three years, amateur naturalists have discovered three new species. He believes that if society cares about natural resources, citizens will always demand justice for the environment.

“I studied the ecology of plants, particularly in the rainforests of Mexico. There I realized the richness of Mexico’s nature and the richness of the local people’s knowledge about it.“