Sarah J Converse, PhD

Dr. Converse received graduate degrees from the University of Nebraska and Colorado State University. She then completed a postdoctoral position at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center before accepting a permanent position with USGS at Patuxent, where she led a research program for 10 years focused on endangered species conservation, decision science, and quantitative ecology. In 2017 she became the Unit Leader of the Washington Unit at University of Washington, where she serves as an Associate Professor. Her research focuses on the development and application of methods to understand the functioning of populations and to improve their management. She works across a broad variety of taxa: terrestrial birds, seabirds, marine mammals, amphibians, and others. Her research projects tend to reflect two primary themes: (1) development and application of quantitative methods in population ecology, particularly for small and declining populations; and (2) development and application of decision-analytic methods to inform management of populations. Sarah collaborates extensively with managers in federal and state agencies, and she works internationally, with current research projects located in Europe, New Zealand, French Polynesia, and the Arctic. Sarah teaches graduate courses in statistics and demographic analysis, and teaches professional and graduate courses on decision analysis.