About Me

 I have been working with wildlife for over 20 years, specialising in primate  conservation issues.  I have graduate and post-graduate qualifications in Psychology and Biological Science from the University of Wales. My PhD thesis assessed the benefits of using ethnographic data to drive conservation strategy.  My inclusive approach greatly increased the efficiency and long term sustainability of our conservation initiatives by identifying social and cultural obstacles to conservation, meaningful engagement and inclusion of local stakeholders leading to pro-conservation behaviour change.
My research focuses the complex facets of human-wildlife coexistence particularly human-animal relations as well as people's perceptions of wildlife conservation. I am vice-chair of the IUCN Primate Specialist Group's Section for Human-Primate Interactions. 
 My fieldwork experience includes Belize, Cambodia, Canada, Laos, Mauritius, Morocco, USA, Venezuela and Vietnam. I am a native English speaker and am also fluent in Spanish and Italian and fairly skilled in the use of social media.

Recommendation from Dr John Fellowes - Full Circle Foundation, Hong Kong

"Dr Siân Waters has spent a career in frontline conservation, in a range of different roles. Beginning in the zoo world she soon became a respected innovator in wild animal husbandry and conservation breeding, whilst also acquiring wide experience in field conservation projects across different continents. Her voluntary contributions have been under-appreciated and immense. This practical experience and her psychological training have informed her appreciation of the complex social dimensions of conservation; I’ve long enjoyed discussing these with her, as she combines critical thinking with a free-thinking commitment to social justice (a surprisingly rare combination in the conservation world). She later returned to deepen the academic basis of her work with a multi-disciplinary PhD, and integrated new insights into the pioneering Barbary Macaque Awareness & Conservation project in Morocco. I was delighted to have a chance to work with her last year, gaining her critical input to reviews of conservation projects in the Congo Basin. In short Siân is a cherished colleague and I’d strongly recommend her as a consultant."