Professor Liz Williamson

Honorary Professor

Psychology Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, FK9 4LA

Professor Liz Williamson

About me

I have been affiliated with the University of Stirling since 1983, as a PhD student, an Honorary Research Fellow (1992–2022), and an Honorary Professor since 2022. In the 1980s, I studied the behavioural ecology of western lowland gorillas at Lopé in Gabon. In the 1990s and 2000s, I worked in the forests of Cameroon (Dja), Central African Republic (Bangassou), Democratic Republic of Congo (Kahuzi-Biega), Liberia (Sapo) and Rwanda (Nyungwe and Volcanoes National Parks). I was Director of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund’s Karisoke Research Centre in Rwanda for six years, and Chair of the Section on Great Apes (SGA) of the IUCN SSC Primate Specialist Group (PSG) for 10 years. I serve on the Executive Committee of the PSG and am the IUCN Red List Authority Coordinator for all great ape taxa: bonobos, chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans.

Conservation, ecology and behaviour of gorillas (eastern and western) and other great apes. Areas of particular concern are prevention of disease transmission from humans to great apes, and control of the negative impacts of tourism on great apes. I have edited and produced a number of IUCN publications, including conservation action plans for gorillas, chimpanzees and bonobos (http://www.primate-sg.org/action_plans); and a series of best practice guidelines for great ape conservation (http://www.primate-sg.org/best_practices).

Award

Award for Excellence in Primate Conservation
The fifth biennial Margot Marsh Biodiversity Foundation Award for Excellence in Primate Conservation was given to Liz Williamson in recognition of her achievements in gorilla conservation. The Margot Marsh Biodiversity Foundation was established in the 1990s, and has provided more than $12 million to primate conservation projects worldwide. https://www.grantmakers.io/profiles/v0/330683174-margot-marsh-biodiversity-foundation-co-first-republic-investment-management/