“Research at BRIT is significant because of the work we do in three areas:   biodiversity research, curriculum development and sustainability.  BRIT is the only institution on the planet that is single minded in its focus on plants…”


     

    Will McClatchey, Ph.D.
    V. P. and Director of Research

     

    Dr. Will McClatchey, PhD, oversees the Research Program at BRIT, which includes the herbarium (plant collections), bioinformatics, publications and the library as well as multiple interactive research programs.

    The author of numerous botanical papers and articles, Dr. McClatchey’s research addresses hypotheses about the evolution of patterns of human interactions with plants and ecosystems.  He has extensive research experience in the South and Western Pacific regions on questions combining plant systematics, biogeography, and ethnobiology.

     Currently, his research group is working in SE Asia, Europe, and the Pacific Islands studying 1) relationships between distribution patterns of human knowledge of biodiversity and actual biodiversity, 2) development and distribution of anthropogenic ecosystems, and 3) production of traditional alcoholic beverages.

    Prior to this position, McClatchey was a tenured professor of botany at the University of Hawai`i (UH) at Mānoa, Honolulu, Hawai`i.  He earned a B.S. in Pharmacy and Anthropology from Oregon State University, his M.S in Botany from Brigham Young University, and his Ph.D. in Evolutionary Biology from the University of Florida.
    McClatchey credits his logging years as a young teen in Oregon for his interest in botanical sciences.


    Trends/Issues/Expertise

    • Dealing with Changing Climates
    • Agrobiodiversity
    • Biological Evolution
    • Food Security and Wild Plants
    • How botanical solutions can address globally challenging problems
    • Role of plants in helping to clean up pollution
    • Botany, Ethnobotany, Conservation Biology, Herbal Medicine
    • The Ecology of Regenerative Design/Biomimicry
    • Traditional Farmer's Knowledge
    • Benefits of forming interdisciplinary collaborations for critical research within scientific, educational, social, cultural, and business communities.
    • Development of multidisciplinary education programs in biological and social sciences such as Ethnobotany
    • Botanical research approaches (lenses) as a creative means to problem solving. Includes Taxonomy, Ethnobotany, the basis of BRIT, Ecological/environmental, Biomimicry.


    McClatchey’s passion is:
    Encouraging University students to consider careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math through short “segues to science” in introductory courses.


    Phone: (817) 546-1840
    Fax: (817) 332-4112
    E-mail: wmcclatchey@brit.org

     

    Direct Media Inquiries To:
    Chris Chilton
    (817) 546-8691
    cchilton@brit.org