Joyce Maschinski

About Dr. Joyce Maschinski is Director of Plant Conservation at the Institute for Conservation Research at San Diego Zoo Global and V.P. of Science and Conservation at the Center for Plant Conservation. Joyce received her B.S. and M. Ed. degrees at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona, and her doctorate from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona. From 1990-2002, she worked at The Arboretum at Flagstaff as Curator of Plants, Interim Director, and Director of Research, where her job encompassed aspects of research, administration and collaborations regarding plant conservation with federal, state and non-profit agencies. At Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden (2002-2016), Joyce led the conservation team to accomplish both applied and theoretical research on rare plants of South Florida and the Caribbean. At SDZG she is leading efforts to end plant extinction in the southwest with particular emphasis in San Diego County. For CPC, she coordinates synthesizing network science on best practices in plant conservation. Her research interests have centered on understanding factors that limit reproduction, growth and expansion of rare plant populations. Factors impacting rare plants that she has examined include seed biology, hybridization, herbivory, habitat destruction, timber harvest, trampling, climate change, sea level rise, and fire threats to rare plants. She has over 60 peer-reviewed publications on endanger plants in books and scientific journals, including: Conservation Biology, Biological Conservation, Climatic Change, Nature Plants, Restoration Ecology, Conservation Genetics, and others.  Believing firmly in the power of network collaborations, she has taught several applied workshops and coordinated working groups to generate best practices for the Center for Plant Conservation. She also organized regional Rare Plant Task Forces and conferences on endangered plants and has provided management solutions for the conservation of rare plant species. She and her team members have received awards for plant conservation efforts from Center for Plant Conservation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Deering Estate Foundation.