Paula Skye Tallman

Dr. Paula Skye Tallman is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Loyola University of Chicago and holds the Carolyn Farrell, BVM, Endowed Professorship in Women and Leadership at the Gannon Center for Women and Leadership. She joined Loyola University Chicago in 2021 after completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the Field Museum of Natural History. Dr. Tallman directs the Laboratory for Human Health and History and runs two leadership coaching programs for graduate students at Loyola.

Dr. Tallman received her Ph.D. in Biological Anthropology from Northwestern University in 2015. She then completed a postdoctoral fellowship focused on Indigenous well-being and conservation at the Field Museum of Natural History in 2016.

Dr. Tallman's research integrates perspectives from anthropology and global health to examine how environmental factors are linked to human health, with a particular focus on South America and Southeast Asia. Her work employs a biocultural approach that combines theory and methods from human biology and critical medical anthropology. She has conducted extensive fieldwork in the Peruvian Amazon among the Awajún people, examining issues such as water insecurity, gender-based violence, mental health, and the impacts of environmental change on indigenous communities. Her research often addresses the intersection of environmental conservation and human well-being, advocating for community-led approaches to sustainability.

Dr. Tallman's recent publications reveal a strong focus on water insecurity and its relationship to women's health and gender-based violence across multiple cultural contexts. Her work demonstrates how environmental factors like water access intersect with social determinants of health to produce health disparities, particularly for women in indigenous communities. She has pioneered interdisciplinary approaches that combine anthropological methods with public health frameworks to address complex health challenges in resource-limited settings.

• Carolyn Farrell, BVM, Endowed Professorship in Women and Leadership
• National Science Foundation grant
• Schmitt Foundation grant
• Wenner-Gren Foundation grant
• British Academy Knowledge Frontiers: International Interdisciplinary Research Program grant

Dr. Tallman has secured over $1 million in research funding from prestigious organizations to support her work on water insecurity, gender-based violence, and indigenous health. She mentors students through her laboratory and directs two leadership coaching programs for graduate students at Loyola University Chicago. Her research has involved collaborations with institutions and researchers across Peru, Indonesia, and the United States, creating opportunities for student involvement in international fieldwork and interdisciplinary research projects.

Dr. Tallman directs the Laboratory for Human Health and History at Loyola University Chicago, where she leads a team of researchers examining the connections between environmental factors and human health outcomes. Her lab employs both qualitative and quantitative methods, including biological sampling and ethnographic research, to investigate health disparities in indigenous communities. She has established ongoing research partnerships with communities in the Peruvian Amazon and Indonesia, focusing on action-oriented research that promotes gender equality and environmental conservation.