Kerry Woods
Kerry Woods is an ecologist whose recent work includes long-term studies of old-growth forests, landscape ecology of the Taconic Mountains, and collaborative biogeographic analyses of global temperate forests. His work has been supported by NASA, NSF, US Forest Service, and the Mellon Foundation.
Biography
Woods has broad-ranging research experience in community and ecosystem ecology, and teaches classes in ecology, evolution, and regional natural history. Current research projects include multi-decade studies of ecosystem dynamics in old-growth forests in Michigan, analyses of landscape pattern as related to land-use history in the Taconic Mountains of New York and Vermont, and collaborative meta-analyses and modeling of dynamics in late-successional, cool-temperate forest in Europe, Asia, and North America. As part of this last effort, he has recently participated in the establishment of two international research collaborations with European and Asian scientists.
Woods’ research has been supported by grants from NASA, National Science Foundation, U.S. Forest Service, the Andrew Mellon Foundation, and the Huron Mountain Wildlife Foundation; awards recognizing past research include the Harvard University Bullard Fellowship (1999), the Center Fellowship at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis at Santa Barbara, California (2008–09), and a Fulbright at Ljubljana University, Slovenia (2014). He has published more than 25 papers in peer-reviewed journals including The Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, Ecology, Quaternary Research, Journal of Ecology, Journal of Biogeography, Canadian Journal of Forest Research, Ecological Applications, and Journal of Vegetation Science.
Since 2003, Woods has been director of research for the Huron Mountain Wildlife Foundation. He was program chair for the national meetings of the Ecological Society of America in 2007, has served as editor for JPEER and journals of the Ecological Society of America and the International Association for Vegetation Science, and has chaired Professional Ethics Committees for the Ecological Society of America and the International Association for Vegetation Science. He teaches a wide range of courses in ecology, evolutionary biology, field biology (including field classes in the Sonoran Desert), and environmental science and history. Many of his students have participated in his research and have established connections with major research labs around the world (several directed by Bennington alums). Woods taught at Bennington from 1986 to 2021, during which time he has also held visiting appointments at Central European University (Hungary) and University of Vermont. BS, Illinois College; PhD, Cornell University.