Undergraduate Ethnobiologist Award Goes to Alex McAlvay

The Society of Ethnobiology is pleased to announce that Alex McAlvay is the first recipient of our "Undergraduate Ethnobiologist Award".  Alex is a senior biological anthropology student at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington. His chief interests are in evolutionary medicine and nutrition. Among other accomplishments, Alex has undertaken several projects related to indigenous diet, especially in the Cascadia region of the NW US, including establishing a native plant demonstration garden at Mercer Island Library. He has lived and participated in farming on the Navajo Reservation; done fieldwork in Kwakwak'wakw gardens, Kingcome Inlet, BC; and he has work experience at Huichol Center for Cultural Survival and Traditional Arts in Huejuquilla, Mexico; Herb Pharm (a tincture manufacturer and herb farm); and the University of Washington’s medicinal plant and ethnobotanical gardens. He is a member of Washington Native Plant Stewardship, the Cascade Cactus and Succulent Society, Northwest Mushroomers, and the Board of Governors for Sehome Arboretum in Bellingham. Alex is enthusiastic about increasing undergraduate interest and involvement in the Society. Alex McAlvay will formally accept his award at our 2011 annual meeting of the Society of Ethnobiology in Columbus, Ohio.