Josh earned a B.S. in Biology and Environmental Studies from Brandeis University, a M.Sc. in Zoology while a Fulbright Scholar at James Cook University in Australia, and a Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Princeton University. Prior to his current position at Archbold, Josh helped reestablish scientific capacity in Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique following the country's devastating civil war, while researching how war affects wildlife Africa-wide. He was also a biologist in the US Fish and Wildlife Service headquarters leading Species Status Assessments under the Endangered Species Act. 

-Lead the scientific arm of the statewide campaign to conserve the Florida Wildlife Corridor.

-Oversee invasive species and fire management on Archbold Biological Station and Reserve.

-Coordinate Archbold collaboration with regional conservation cooperatives including the Avon Park Air Force Range Sentinel Landscape and Lake Wales Ridge Ecosystem Working Group.

-Represent of conservation interests to county and regional community groups.

-Build capacity and strategy to deploy and track impacts of Archbold science for conservation.

-Research in landscape ecology and conservation science.


Josh is the Director of Conservation at Archbold where his overarching focus is to build the use of science in conservation of biodiversity and large landscapes. He leads develop and implementation of Archbold’s conservation strategy, collaborations with agencies, landowners, NGOs, and researchers from the immediate Archbold neighborhood to the statewide Florida Wildlife Corridor and beyond, and oversees land management on the Station and Reserve. 

Joshua Daskin, Ph.D.

Director of Conservation

Connectivity is key for long-term retention of biodiversity in the face of increasingly fragmented habitats and climate change, but identifying specific areas for connectivity conservation is complex. The Florida Circuit Model is based on land cover resistance to species' movement and maps both statewide and local connectivity. It uses new algorithms borrowed from electrical engineering  to make more realistic assumptions about species' movement.

Model statewide Florida habitat connectivity using circuit theory, co-produce with conservation practitioners the materials to share and apply the model

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The model identifies remnant connections key to preserving the remaining links among habitat patches. It provides independent support for the geography of the Florida Wildlife Corridor, whose area includes a disproportionately high share of the pathways key for species' movement, and relatively little acreage where species' movement is blocked. Conservationists are using the model to identify locations in greatest need of protection and restoration.

Connecting for conservation across Florida

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