CHES Graduate Affiliate
- Charles Maingi Kivasu
- Advisor: Dr. Ryne Palombit
- Focus Area: Non-Human Primates
- Email: charles.kivasu.maingi@rutgers.edu
- ACADEMIC BIOGRAPHY:
I joined the Department of Anthropology, PhD program in the fall of 2020. I completed my Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Conservation and Natural Resource Management and later a Master of Science degree in Biology of Conservation from the University of Nairobi, Kenya.
- CURRENT PROJECTS:
I intend to focus my studies on the behavior ecology of nonhuman primates and their nutrition in their natural habitats and how they inform human evolution.
Currently, I am implementing a project on the promotion Tana mangabey population recovery and habitat resilience through community outreach and sensitization on sustainable forest resources use.
- RESEARCH INTERESTS:
Primate behavior ecology, conservation, social behaviors, and their interactions with humans
My Masters research focused on the implications of forest fragmentation and human activities on plant foods and behavior of the Tana River Mangabey (Cercocebus galeritus). Also, I have been engaged in assessing the utilization of forest resources by the local community and their impact on the highly endangered Tana River mangabey. In future, I aim to contribute to the conservation of primates by understanding their interactions with the human.
