About the Society
Biogeography is the study at all scales of analysis of the distribution of life across space and how it has changed through time. 1
Historically largely descriptive, we have seen the transformation of the field of biogeography into a rigorous science. Now, with rapidly developing technologies (including genomic tools and environmental models) together with the availability of big data and increasingly sophisticated analytical tools, the field is poised for a revolution that brings its relevance into domains far beyond ecology and evolutionary biology, to include paleontology, bioinformatics, global change biology, conservation, and invasion biology, as well as sustainable food systems and ecosystem services.
The International Biogeography Society, founded in 2001, is the primary forum for biogeographers worldwide. Join us! You can help to support our mission: to foster communication and collaboration between biogeographers in disparate academic fields, increase both the awareness and interests of the scientific community and the lay public in the contributions of biogeographers, and promote the training and education of biogeographers so that they may develop sound strategies for studying and conserving the world’s biota.
1 R.J. Whittaker and R.J. Ladle, Chapter 1 in Ladle, R.J. & Whittaker, R.J. (eds) (2011) Conservation Biogeography. Wiley-Blackwell.
TIBS Distinguished Fellows (2024)
TIBS Distinguished Fellows (2022)
MacArthur & Wilson Awardees
Named after R. H. MacArthur and E. O. Wilson, this award honors their seminal contributions to biogeography. The award recognizes an individual for a notable, innovative contribution to biogeography. It is targeted at comparatively early career investigators and has a guideline that recipients should have completed their PhD no more than 12 years before the deadline for nominations. The committee has some flexibility in regard to this criterion, to take account of differing life and career paths. A pair of collaborators might be considered providing both are eligible by this criterion.
The recipient should be prepared to offer a paper at the biennial meeting of the TIBS and will be invited to publish a short article on their work in Frontiers of Biogeography. In return, their attendance at the meeting will be underwritten by the TIBS.
Nominations consist of a supporting cover letter of no more than 800 words, co-signed by two members of the IBS, plus a short cv of the nominee, plus pdfs of four key papers published by the nominee, at least two of which should have been published within the last three years. Current members of the IBS Board are not eligible for nomination.
Nominations should be sent to biogeography.ibs@nullgmail.com, c/o Wilson Award SubCommittee (pdf’s are preferred) in response to a call released approximately one year in advance of the next biennial conference (convened in January of odd-numbered years). An individual can be nominated for a single paper or a ‘group of papers’ and it is anticipated that such a corpus of work will involve – in the spirit of MacArthur & Wilson’s famous monograph – scholarly collaborations with other co-workers.
2024 – Tom Matthews
2021/22 – Jason Weir
2019 – Ceridwen Fraser
2017 – Jessica Blois
2015 – Daniel L. Rabosky
2013 – Miguel B. Araújo
Wallace Awardees
The Alfred Russel Wallace Award was established by the International Biogeography Society (IBS) in 2004 to recognize a lifetime of outstanding contributions by an eminent scholar in any subdiscipline of biogeography.
Nominations consist of a supporting cover letter of no more than 800 words, co-signed by two members of the TIBS, plus an abbreviated CV of the nominee. The selected recipient will be invited to address the society at its next biennial meeting.
Nominations should be submitted to biogeography.ibs@nullgmail.com, c/o the Chair of the Awards Committee in response to a call released approximate one year in advance of the next biennial conference (convened in January of odd-numbered years). Current members of the TIBS Board are not eligible for nomination.
2024 – Robert Whittaker
2021 – Petr Pysek
2019 – Rosemary Gillespie
2017 – Margaret Davis
2015 – Daniel Simberloff
2013 – James H. Brown
2011 – Robert E. Ricklefs
2009 – John C. Avise
2007 – Jared M. Diamond
2005 – John C. Briggs
Dissertation Awardees
The Doctoral Dissertation award was created by The International Biogeography Society in 2013, to recognize outstanding work done by students and recent PhD graduates. It aims to recognize and promote innovative dissertation work that brings together diverse fields of study, and in so doing, is likely to make major contributions to the field of Biogeography.
The International Biogeography Society Doctoral Dissertation winner will be invited to give a plenary talk at the next biennial conference.
Please see details for the latest call here.
2024 – Benjamin R. Shipley
2021 – Antonia Salces Castellano
2019 – Johannes Wessely
2017 – Carsten Meyer
2013 – Matthew Iacchei
Lifetime Membership Award
The Society shall occasionally take the opportunity of a particular anniversary or event to award Lifetime Honorary Membership for especially notable contributions to biogeography.
Nominations will be considered twice per year by the IBS Awards Committee and confirmed with the recipient prior to announcement. Nominations may be submitted at any time to the President at least 6 months preceding a relevant anniversary or event and should consist of (1) a complete CV and (2) a biography of the nominee written in the style of a “Profiles – biography” article suitable for publication in Frontiers of Biogeography. We encourage simultaneous submission of the nomination package to the TIBS and the biography to Frontiers of Biogeography. Awards are expected to be made rarely, but all biographies will be considered for publication in Frontiers of Biogeography coinciding with the anniversary or event.
2013 – James H. Brown
2007 – Edward O. Wilson
