Anita Hagy Ferguson

Biography

Anita Hagy Ferguson holds MA and PhD degrees in interdisciplinary Environmental Social Science from Arizona State University. She graduated summa cum laude from Southern Oregon University with a BS in Human Communication and a minor in Philosophy.

She investigates the psychological, behavioral, cultural, social, and systemic aspects of conservation landscapes and the narratives and storytelling that link and influence human perspectives about wild animals, wild spaces, and their conservation. She explores more-than-human perspectives on conservation interventions and consults on trans-sector, multi-scale conservation efforts, such as wildlife corridor, rewilding, and landscape connectivity initiatives, in which humans and wild animals share space in rapidly changing or contested environments.

For the IIC, Dr. Hagy Ferguson works to enhance inclusive conservation communications by nurturing approaches that integrate diverse ways of knowing and being into conservation conversations, planning, and action. She leverages a background in anthropology, human and animal geographies, intercultural communication, conflict transformation, and media arts to advance conservation storytelling, interdisciplinary knowledge synthesis, and collaborative conservation. She is a Professional Affiliate of the W&M Interdisciplinary Studies Program.

She loves animals (including the human ones), big ideas, big challenges, board games, music, all kinds of art, and pretty much anything outside. She is engaged in advocacy for humane treatment of all animals and volunteers in community rescue, foster and rehoming initiatives for free-roaming cats.