معرفی
Zarin Machanda is an Associate Professor in both the Anthropology Department and the Biology Department at Tufts University. She directs long-term research at the Kibale Chimpanzee Project in Uganda and serves on the Board of the Kasiisi Project, a community development organization working with over 9,000 school children near Kibale National Park.
Her educational background includes a PhD in Human Evolutionary Biology from Harvard University (2009), an MA in Anthropology from Harvard University, and a BSc in Biology & Anthropology from McGill University (2002).
Machanda's research focuses on wild chimpanzee health and behavior, primate conservation, and the evolution of leadership. Her work examines the factors shaping social relationships among wild chimpanzees, with particular attention to male-female relationships, male-male cooperation (especially cooperative hunting), and chimpanzee communication systems. She has recently initiated a long-term project studying infant and juvenile chimpanzees and how they develop sex-typed adult behaviors.
Her research publications reveal trends across primatology, behavioral ecology, and evolutionary anthropology, with particular emphasis on social dynamics, communication, and conservation. Her work integrates long-term field observations with physiological data to understand chimpanzee behavior and its evolutionary implications.
Machanda's professional activities include directing the Kibale Chimpanzee Project, which has conserved and protected the Kanyawara community of chimpanzees for over 30 years. She also works with the Kasiisi Project to support community development around Kibale National Park.
Her conservation work addresses challenges including illegal poaching, logging, and resource extraction in Kibale National Park, with initiatives like the Kibale Snare Removal Project protecting chimpanzees while engaging local communities in conservation and education.
