Maria Grace Fadiman (born July 4, 1969) is an American

ethnobotanist Ethnobotany is the study of a region's plants and their practical uses through the traditional knowledge of a local culture and people. An ethnobotanist thus strives to document the local customs involving the practical uses of local flora for m ...

and Professor of

Geosciences Earth science or geoscience includes all fields of natural science related to the planet Earth. This is a branch of science dealing with the physical, chemical, and biological complex constitutions and synergistic linkages of Earth's four spheres ...

Florida Atlantic University Florida Atlantic University (Florida Atlantic or FAU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Boca Raton, Florida, and satellite campuses in Dania Beach, Florida, Dania Beach, Davie, Florida, Davie, Fort Lauderd ...

Biography

Fadiman is the daughter of documentary filmmaker

Dorothy Fadiman Dorothy Fadiman (born June 3, 1939 in Pennsylvania) is an American documentary filmmaker, director, and producer. Early life Fadiman was raised in Pennsylvania. Education Fadiman attended University of Pittsburgh and Penn State, and receiv ...

and psychologist and author

James Fadiman James Fadiman (born May 27, 1939) is an American writer known for his research on Psychedelic microdosing, microdosing psychedelics. He co-founded the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, which later became Sofia University (California), Sofia ...

Clifton Fadiman Clifton Paul "Kip" Fadiman (May 15, 1904 – June 20, 1999) was an American intellectual, author, editor, radio and television personality. He began his work with the radio, and switched to television later in his career. Background Born in Bro ...

was her great-uncle, and she is a distant cousin of

Anne Fadiman Anne Fadiman (born August 7, 1953) is an American essayist and reporter. Her interests include literary journalism, essays, memoir, and autobiography. She has received the National Book Critics Circle Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for ...

. She received her BA from

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely follo ...

, her MA from

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

and her PhD from the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

. She was the recipient of an

NSF NSF may stand for: Political organizations *National Socialist Front, a Swedish National Socialist party *NS-Frauenschaft, the women's wing of the former German Nazi party *National Students Federation, a leftist Pakistani students' political gr ...

Grant in 2000-2001 which she used for her dissertation research in

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

. Fadiman joined the faculty at

in 2004. Before her appointment at FAU, she served as part-time faculty at

Sonoma State University Sonoma State University (SSU, Sonoma State, or Sonoma) is a public university in Rohnert Park in Sonoma County, California, US. It is one of the smallest members of the California State University (CSU) system. Sonoma State offers 92 Bachelor's d ...

. In 2006, Fadiman was recognized as an Emerging Explorer by

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

. She was one of only eight Explorers honored by National Geographic in 2006. Fadiman's research specializes in

Latin American Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-eth ...

and

African African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...

ethnobotany Ethnobotany is the study of a region's plants and their practical uses through the traditional knowledge of a local culture and people. An ethnobotanist thus strives to document the local customs involving the practical uses of local flora for m ...

, with a focus on

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

cultures. Her research and publications examine the various ways that

indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

interact with plants in their daily lives, with particular emphasis on the

economy An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the ...

and on

gender roles A gender role, also known as a sex role, is a social role encompassing a range of behaviors and attitudes that are generally considered acceptable, appropriate, or desirable for a person based on that person's sex. Gender roles are usually cent ...

. In Starbucks The Way I See It No 233 she said ''"I used to think that going to the jungle made my life an adventure. However, after years of unusual work in exotic places, I realize that it is not how far off I go, or how deep into the forest I walk that gives my life meaning. I see that living life fully is what makes life – anyone’s life, no matter where they do or do not go – an adventure."''

Recent publications

*2005, Cultivated Food Plants: Culture and Gendered Spaces of Colonists and the Chachi in Ecuador. Journal of Latin American Geography 4(1): 43-57. *2004, Management, Cultivation and Domestication of Weaving Plants: Heteropsis and Astrocaryum in the Ecuadorian Rain Forest. The California Geographer 44:1-19. *2001, Hat weaving with Jipi, Carludovica palmate, (Cyclanthaceae) in the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico. The Journal of Economic Botany 55(4):539-544.

References

External links

Dr. Maria Fadiman's webpageDr Maria Fadiman's webpage at FAUDr Fadiman's biography from National Geographic's Emerging ExplorersInterview with Treehugger"Finding Balance: People, Plants, and Culture in the Amazon"
TEDxBerkeley, 4 Feb 2012
"Rainforest Guiding: Whose Idea Was This Anyway?"
Drunken Boat, 16 Jan 2013
"The intimate relationship of plants and people"
TEDxCancún, 6 Nov 2015
Conversation with a Geographer: Dr. Maria Fadiman
10 May 2016]
"I was a girl from the suburbs, and that girl was terrified"
article,

American Way (magazine) ''American Way'' was a free, inflight magazine available across the entire American Airlines fleet and Admirals Clubs premium lounges. The magazine was first published in 1966. It was published on a monthly basis and reached over 16 million passe ...

for

American Airlines American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...

, May 2018 {{DEFAULTSORT:Fadiman, Maria 21st-century American botanists American women botanists Place of birth missing (living people) Vassar College alumni University of Texas at Austin alumni Tulane University alumni Living people Florida Atlantic University faculty Sonoma State University faculty 1969 births Ethnobotanists Women in forestry American women academics 21st-century American women scientists