Lesley A Sharp

Lesley A Sharp is the Barbara Chamberlain & Helen Chamberlain Josefsberg ’30 Professor of Anthropology at Barnard College. She holds a joint appointment as Senior Research Scientist in Sociomedical Sciences at the Mailman School of Public Health (Columbia University) and is a Fellow of the Center for Animals and Public Policy at Tufts University's Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. Her research spans medical anthropology, bioethics, and human-animal relations, with fieldwork in the U.S., Anglophone countries, and Madagascar.

• Education: Joint Ph.D. from UC Berkeley/UCSF, M.A. from UC Berkeley, B.A. from Brandeis University

Sharp's academic focus encompasses the symbolics of the human body, youth and identity politics in postcolonial Africa, organ transplantation ethics, and the moral consequences of experimental science. Her recent work examines human-animal interactions in laboratory research and carceral healthcare settings.

Her publications bridge Medical Anthropology, Science and Technology Studies, and Animal Ethics. Key themes include the commodification of bodily materials, ethical dilemmas in transplantation, and interspecies responsibility in biomedical innovation.

• Scientific Awards: Guggenheim Fellowship (2020), Wellcome Medal (2019), Leah M. Ashe Prize (2022), New Millennium Book Award (2008), MASA Mentor Award (2019)

Sharp has received external grants from the Wenner-Gren Foundation and Barnard College, with research exploring the moral economies of biotechnology, postcolonial African identity, and bioethical frontiers. Her academic leadership includes teaching awards and endowed chair positions.