Charlie Nilon

Columbia

Charlie Nilon is a professor of urban wildlife management at the University of Missouri. His research and teaching focus on urban wildlife conservation and on the human dimensions of wildlife conservation. Since 1997, he has ben a co-principal investigator on the Baltimore Ecosystem Study (BES). The project in Baltimore and a similar one in Phoenix are the first two urban ecosystems included in the National Science Foundation’s Long-Term Ecological Research program. His work with the BES focuses on understanding how physical, ecological and socioeconomic factors influence the abundance and composition of vertebrate species. Because urban areas are homes for people as well as wildlife, Nilon’s research also considers the role of nature as part of an individual’s day-to-day environment, and environmental justice issues associated with access to nature. Recently he has collaborated with colleagues from the MU School of Medicine on a project studying the kinds of open spaces where children are active. He’s a contributor to the upcoming City Biodiversity Outlook, an associate editor of Urban Ecosystems and a member of the URBIO advisory board.