Wade Davis
Chris Massimino
History
 Born December 14, 1953 in West Vancouver, British
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Columbia
Biology, Anthropology Undergraduate
Ph.D. in Ethnobotany
Harvard University
Student of Dr. Richard Evans Schultes
Photograph by Mark Thiessen,
National Geographic
Background
 Ethnographies of indigenous societies of Northern
Canada, Amazon Basin, Peru, Borneo, Tibet, Arctic,
Orinoco Delta of Venezuela, Northern Kenya,
Morocco, Jordan, Colombia, Europe, Polynesia
 Photographer, Park ranger, Forestry Engineer, big
game hunting guide, licensed river guide
 Marred to Gail Percy, an anthropologist
 Father of two children
Bibliography
 (1985) The Serpent and the Rainbow: A Harvard Scientist’s
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Astonishing Journey into the Secret Societies of Haitian Voodoo,
Zombies, and Magic.
(1988) Passage of Darkness: The Ethnobiology of the Haitian
Zombie
(1990) Penan: Voice for the Borneo Rain Forest
(1991) The art of Shamanic Healing
(1993) Shadow in the Sun
(1996) One River: Explorations and Discoveries in the Amazon
Rain Forest
(1998) Shadows in the Sun: Travels to Landscapes of Spirit and
Desire
(1998) The Clouded Leopard: A Book of Travels
Bibliography
 (1995) Nomads of the Dawn: The Penan of the Borneo
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Rain Forest
(1998) Rainforest: Ancient Realm of the Pacific
Northwest
(2001) Light at the Edge of the World: A Journey
Through the Realm of Vanishing Cultures
(2004) The Lost Amazon: The Photographic Journey of
Richard Evans Schultes
(2008) Editor, Books of Peoples of the World: A Guide
to cultures
Bibliography
 Earthguide
 Spirit of the Mask
 Cry of the Forgotten People
 Forests Forever
 Light at the Edge of the World (4 hour ethnographic
filmed in Rapanu, Tahiti, the Marquesas, Nunavut,
Greenland, Nepal, Peru)
 Peyote to LSD
 Grand Canyon Adventure (IMAX)
Notables
 Harvard Botanical Museum
 National Geographic Society
 American Museum of Natural History
 Smithsonian Institution
 TED Conference
 Institute of Economic Botany of The New York
Botanical Garden
 Hundreds of Universities
 Published 150 scientific and popular articles
Principles
 Ethnosphere (cultural counterpart to the biosphere)
 Advocate of the world’s indigenous cultures
 Languages are diminishing, escaping the current
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generation
Conservation of biological and cultural diversity
Traditional uses of psychoactive plants
Agents of human destruction, Facilitators for cultural
survival
Explorer-in-Residence
Works Cited
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Amazon.com: Wade Davis: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Discussions. (n.d.). Retrieved 2 16,
2010, from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/WadeDavis/e/B000APED2G/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1266314269&sr=8-2-ent
Davis, W. (2007, 1). TED. Retrieved 2 16, 2010, from Wade Davis on endangered cultures:
http://www.ted.com/talks/wade_davis_on_endangered_cultures.html
Davis, W. (2008, 6). TED. Retrieved 2 16, 2010, from Wade Davis on the worldwide web of belief and
ritual: http://www.ted.com/talks/wade_davis_on_the_worldwide_web_of_belief_and_ritual.html
Mackenzie, I. (n.d.). Rimba. Retrieved from Wade Davis - Biographical Sketch:
http://www.rimba.com/oneriver/wadedavisbiosketch.html
National Geographic. (n.d.). Retrieved 2 16, 2010, from National Geographic Events - Wade Davis:
http://events.nationalgeographic.com/events/speakers-bureau/speaker/wade-davis/
National Geographic. (n.d.). Retrieved 2 16, 2010, from Wade Davis, Anthropologist Information,
Facts, News, Photos: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/field/explorers/wade-davis.html
Pescovitz, D. (2010, 2 2). Boing Boing. Retrieved 2 16, 2010, from Wade Davis on voodoo, the Hatai
quake, and Pat Robertson: http://www.boingboing.net/2010/02/02/wade-davis-on-voodoo.html
TED. (n.d.). Retrieved 2 16, 2010, from Wade Davis Profile on TED.com:
http://www.ted.com/speakers/wade_davis.html
Wikipedia. (n.d.). Retrieved 2 16, 2010, from Wade Davis: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wade_Davis