Geoff ChildsView profile
Professor
Geoff Childs is a Professor of Sociocultural Anthropology at Washington University in St. Louis, Department of Anthropology. He holds a PhD from Indiana University. His research bridges anthropology and demography, focusing on Tibetan communities in Nepal, China, and India. He investigates demographic trends, migration, family strategies, and adaptation to rapid development. Education: PhD in Anthropology and Tibetan Studies from Indiana University (2001). Research interests include: Interdisciplinary methods combining quantitative demography and qualitative ethnography. Demographic transitions in Tibetan societies, including fertility, migration, and aging. Impact of development policies on highland communities. Key projects include: Long-term fieldwork in Nubri, Nepal, since 1995, supported by NSF, Fulbright, and others. Collaborative research on elderly well-being in Tibet with Melvyn Goldstein and Puchung Wangdui. Studies on Yartsa Gunbu (cordyceps) harvesting and its socioeconomic impacts. Publications span books and peer-reviewed articles, including Tibetan Diary (2004) and From a Trickle to a Torrent (2018). His work frequently explores themes of cultural preservation, migration, and development. Grants and collaborations include funding from NSF, Wenner-Gren, and co-PI roles with institutions like Case Western Reserve University and the Tibet Academy of Social Sciences. Labs/Teams: Active in multidisciplinary teams studying highland adaptation, including projects on genetics and reproduction in high-altitude populations with Cynthia Beall and Sienna Craig.







