Sophie Gilbert

Dr. Sophie Gilbert is a senior researcher at PERC. Sophie is a wildlife ecologist who is passionate about finding win-wins for nature and people, and building systems and tools to better value and manage natural resources. For more than 20 years, Sophie has advanced the fields of ecology and conservation to support sustainable wildlife populations in our changing world. 

Sophie has worked across diverse ecosystems from Alaska through Canada and into the heart of the American West, and collaborated with interdisciplinary scientists, natural resource agencies, NGOs, indigenous groups, stakeholders, and citizen scientists. She previously worked as a tenured professor at the University of Idaho, as well as driving innovation in ecosystem services crediting at the Natural Capital Exchange (NCX), and bringing wildlife, habitat, and other ecosystem service values into decision-making about how to reduce wildfire risk while at Vibrant Planet. Her research has been covered in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Times of London, The Atlantic, Vox, PBS, National Geographic, and NPR, as well as on podcasts and in documentary films.

Sophie is a small-town girl who’s always interested in exploring, from heading to the big city for her B.Sc. from the University of California, Los Angeles, to following her passion for wildlife to Alaska, where she earned her Ph.D. from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. She loves hiking, trail running, and sharing the outdoors with family and friends.