Wild Life: A Scientist's Journey from Dreams to Purpose

In this vulnerable and urgent memoir, Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant explores the ever-shifting relationship between humans, animals, and the earth through her personal journey to becoming a wildlife ecologist.Growing up in the diverse and bustling California Bay Area, renowned wildlife ecologist Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant always felt worlds away from the white male adventurers she watched explore the wilderness on TV. She dreamed of a future where she could spend sleepless nights under the crowded canopies of the Amazon and the starry skies of the savanna. But as Rae set off on her own journey in the wild, finding her way in a profession where there were few scientists who looked like her, she saw nature’s delicate balance in a new light. In her quest to study the ever-shifting relationship between humans, animals, and place, Rae has realized the vital roles we each play not just as stewards for our land and water, but also for our communities, each other, and ourselves. Wild Life follows Rae from her urban childhood in California and Virginia, to her adventures and explorations in some of the world’s most rugged and remote locales. Hers is a story about a career in the wild spanning nearly two decades, carving a niche for herself as one of very few Black female scientists, and the challenges she has had to overcome, expectations she has had to leave behind, and the many lessons she has learned along the way. Through her personal story of resilience and adaptation, Rae argues for a more connected, more socially and ecologically conscious world. An incredible journey spanning the Great Plains of North America to the rainforests of Madagascar, Wild Life sheds light on our pivotal relationship and responsibility to the natural world and the relatives—both human and otherwise—that we share it with.