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Expanding Conservation Science through Emerging Interdisciplinary STEM Fields
Andrew K Schulz1, Adam S Gouge2, Christine L Madliger2
1Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, Stuttgart, Germany.
Integrative and Comparative Biology
|July 22, 2026
Summary
Conservation science can be enhanced by integrating physiology, biomechanics, and technology. These fields offer new tools and collaborations to address the biodiversity crisis and promote evidence-based conservation strategies.
Area of Science:
- Interdisciplinary conservation science
- Integrative biological fields
Background:
- Biodiversity crisis poses significant threats to global sustainability and human health.
- Conservation science traditionally integrates natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities.
- Emerging integrative fields like physiology, biomechanics, and technology offer novel tools for conservation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the integration of conservation physiology, biomechanics, and technology in conservation science research.
- To identify opportunities for expanding the conservation toolbox.
- To explore the potential for novel collaborations within conservation science.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of publications from five conservation-focused journals (2010-2025).
- Quantitative analysis of the proportion of articles incorporating physiology, biomechanics, and technology.
- Case studies illustrating the application of these integrative fields.
Main Results:
- The integration of conservation physiology, biomechanics, and technology remains low, with 1.8-5.4% of articles annually.
- Only 3.6% of total articles utilized tools from these three emerging disciplines.
- Case studies demonstrate the potential of these fields to contribute to conservation outcomes.
Conclusions:
- There is substantial untapped potential for integrating physiology, biomechanics, and technology into conservation science.
- These fields can foster new collaborations and enhance evidence-based, action-oriented conservation.
- A Challenge-Mechanism-Partnership framework can guide the expansion of conservation science.
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