Erik Kiviat, PhD, is a lifelong resident of the Hudson Valley and cofounder of Hudsonia at the Bard College Field Station, a nonprofit institute for research, education, and technical assistance in the environmental sciences. A certified wetland scientist, he has more than 40 years’ experience with natural history and environmental issues in the Northeast, and elsewhere in North America. He also has worked extensively with policy-makers, land use planners, and environmental managers.
Formerly professor of environmental studies at Bard College’s Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Kiviat has researched the habitats and populations of rare and common turtle species, and performed landscape-level management of animals with large area requirements. He has conducted studies of biota, communities, and ecosystems in tidal wetlands and other habitats of the Hudson River, and other northeastern estuaries. He spent 10 years researching biodiversity and its management in the urban landscape of the Hackensack Meadowlands, and researched the ecology and management of invasive plants, especially long-present species such as common reed, purple loosestrife, Japanese knotweed, and water chestnut, which have both positive and negative impacts on native biodiversity and environmental services.
Throughout his career, Erik Kiviat has been teaching professionals and students. He also has authored or coauthored 80 publications and 200 technical assistance reports on wetland ecology, rare species, conservation science, invasive plants, Hudson Valley natural history, and human ecology. He is author of The Northern Shawangunks: An Ecological Survey; Hudson River East Bank Natural Areas; and Hackensack Meadowlands, New Jersey, Biodiversity: A Review and Synthesis; and coauthor of Biodiversity Assessment Manual for the Hudson River Estuary Corridor.