Jo Setchell

Professor, Department of Anthropology

Jo is the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Primatology. She is a primatologist with broad interests in behavioural ecology, human-primate interactions, primate conservation, and ethics. She has conducted extensive fieldwork in Gabon and spent time in many other primate habitat countries. She is convinced that conservation must be underpinned by a deep understanding of the historical, political and social context. She and her collaborators have described their interdisciplinary approach to conservation here and here. Her recent editorial on Promoting Equitable Research Partnerships in Primatology explores how primatologists can collaborate more equitably and examines some of the challenges involved. Her teaching acknowledges historical biases in primate research, discusses power dynamics and marginalization, and discusses how we can move towards collaborative research and conservation.

Relevant modules taught:

Primates in Peril examines the primate extinction crisis in depth, including why primates matter, the threats to primates, how we assess those threats, and how we can mitigate them. We explore why and how we need to decolonise primate conservation, and explore the complexity of ethical dilemmas in primate conservation.

Decolonising Anthropology aims to encourage critical reflection on the legacies of the colonial encounter for the practices and theories of different sub-disciplines of Anthropology. We aim to provide students and staff with a set of critical tools to reflect on their own positions and practices within post-colonial structures of power, prejudice, and inequality.