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Conservation Genetics
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Conservation Genetics - Moving toward equity in knowledge and resource sharing in the quickly advancing landscape of conservation genetics

Guest Editors

Brook G. Milligan, Department of Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, USA
Ashley T. Rohde, Department of Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, USA

Theme & Objective

Conservation genetics has advanced greatly as a field, making great strides as recently as the last decade. Genomic technologies are more widespread now than ever and are being applied to an increased variety of conservation questions. However, barriers block the spread of knowledge and technologies across geography and governmental jurisdictions, and as a result many conservation practitioners are not able to use the most effective technologies to address the conservation needs within their spheres of influence. For example, of the 3,664 authors of 2,830 papers published in Conservation Genetics over its 23 years of existence, a full 95% are affiliated with only 35 industrially developed countries. Much of the world’s biodiversity and potential applications of conservation genetics lie within the remainder.  As a result, a major gap exists between those with access to conservation genetics technologies and those for whom access could help solve local problems.

This special issue draws attention to this gap and, most importantly, seeks solutions to improve the equity of knowledge and resource distribution. It will build on ideas to be presented during two upcoming events:


The theme of the special issue will focus on two areas:

  1. Exploration of the development and application of new methods and technologies in conservation genetics, and
  2. Physical and social barriers that create inequity in their applications, and therefore impede the widespread uptake of methods and technologies.


The objective of the special issue is two-fold. Firstly, to showcase the potential applications of novel and developing molecular methods to questions of biological conservation. And, secondly, to both highlight the inequitable distribution of resources and knowledge in conservation genetics and develop strategies to minimize that inequity. It will also address United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 10: Reduced Inequalities (this opens in a new tab), 15: Life on Land (this opens in a new tab), Target 15.1: Conserve and Restore Ecosystems (this opens in a new tab), Target 15.5: Protect Biodiversity and Natural Habitats (this opens in a new tab), Target 15.6: Genetic Resources and Fair Sharing of the Benefits (this opens in a new tab), and Target 15.9: Integrate Biodiversity in Governmental Planning (this opens in a new tab).

We particularly seek submissions of molecular data-driven research studies that use novel or cutting-edge methods to address conservation genetic questions. We also welcome well-informed and concise review papers that address relevant topics along the theme of the development of molecular methods for conservation biology and the equitable distribution of the resources required to successfully execute such studies. Students and Early Career Researchers (this opens in a new tab) are especially encouraged to submit.

Requirements for this Special Issue

For data-based submissions, we require authors to include a sub-section in their discussion entitled “Contribution to reducing barriers to equitable access and application”.  This section will explore the connections of the work presented in the manuscript with wider societal implications. We do not prefer papers that demonstrate methods with a high likelihood of overcoming barriers to global access, but we seek fair and objective assessments of the strengths and weaknesses of methods for application in underserved regions. We encourage authors to consider the following aspects of the research that may promote or impede global applications of the methods:

  • resources (fiscal, structural, and informational) necessary to replicate the work presented or to transfer the approach to other contexts where it may be useful,
  • attributes of the methods or existing dissemination networks that are currently or could be leveraged to encourage wider application of the methods,
  • physical and societal barriers that may impede global uptake of the methods, and
  • steps that are currently or could be taken at the organizational level of working groups, institutions, and/or broader societal networks to promote equity in the development of the methods for wider use.


Review articles included in this issue will explore the detail and nuance of the concepts mentioned in the requirements described above for the “Contribution to reducing barriers to equitable access and application” section. These papers may address conservation genetics as a field or some subsection of the field, but they must provide examples of successes and failures in achieving equitable access to knowledge, technology, and resources as it is relevant to the chosen focus.  

For Review articles, we require authors to include a sub-section in their discussion entitled “Actionable steps toward reducing barriers to equitable access and application”. This section will explicitly describe steps for minimizing or eliminating barriers to equitable access to novel and developing methods and technologies in conservation genetics and will make practical recommendations for their implementation.

Pre-submission enquiries to the guest editors are welcome.

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: June 30, 2024


EXPECTED PUBLICATION: Late 2024
(Accepted articles will be made available Online First (this opens in a new tab) on an ongoing basis.)

About the Guest Editors

Dr. Brook G. Milligan is Director of the Conservation Genomics Laboratory and Professor of Biology at New Mexico State University. After earning a B.A. in physics from Dartmouth College and a Ph.D. in ecology from the University of California, Davis, Dr. Milligan worked at the University of Michigan as an N.S.F. Postdoctoral Fellow in Plant Biology. Subsequently, he has held academic positions at the University of Texas at Austin and New Mexico State University. Throughout his career, Dr. Milligan has focused his attention on the interface between population genetics and ecology/evolution, applying skills ranging from mathematical modeling to molecular genetics to field demography. Of particular interest is the challenge of extracting useful information about natural populations from patterns of genetic variation. This requires overcoming the limitation that there is little genetic information available for most natural populations, resulting in methodological, quantitative and mathematical challenges.

Dr. Milligan's recent work in genomics focuses on harnessing biomedical and other innovative technologies to achieve rapid and inexpensive processing of genomes. This allows analysis of both a larger number of samples and of a larger proportion of each sample. This expansion provides a far more robust basis for identifying distinctive genetic markers for certain species or populations. These markers drive the development of practical applications to track specimens for conservation and management, and for enforcement of policies for particular species or populations. He has worked with the U.S. Forest Service, the Department of State, and USAID to increase awareness and uptake of conservation genetic technologies. Dr. Milligan has also represented the United States in international negotiations and meetings on timber tracking technologies. To improve equitable access, he has introduced genomics innovations applicable to conservation genetics to underserved countries, including Indonesia, Nepal, and Peru.

Dr. Ashley T. Rohde is a biologist working as a post-doctoral researcher in the Department of Biology at New Mexico State University. She completed a B.A. in Biology at Kalamazoo College, a M.S. in Biology at Boise State University, and a Ph.D. at Utah State University. Dr. Rohde’s work focuses on applications of population and community ecology to conservation questions, using abundance-based and molecular methods. She is particularly interested in the application of emerging genetic and genomic methods to questions of biological conservation in non-model taxa. Dr. Rohde worked for more than ten years with the USGS performing research on the influence of natural disturbance and restoration activities on insect communities, with a particular focus on pollinators. During her time at Utah State University, Dr. Rohde worked for the USDA Agricultural Research Service studying the conservation genetics of bumble bees. She was the only graduate student invited by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to contribute to the species status assessment of an endangered bumble bee species, Bombus occidentalis. In addition to Dr. Rohde’s primary research, she has a strong interest in promoting equitable access to science knowledge and tools, which she has expressed through various science communication activities, including as a science reporter at Utah Public Radio.

Since beginning her post-doctoral work at New Mexico State University, Dr. Rohde has fostered professional collaborations with researchers at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands Department of Fish and Wildlife, and multiple universities to expand her research portfolio. Some of her current research interests include the impacts of active season heat waves and overwintering temperature shifts on vulnerable bumble bee populations, the influence of biotic and abiotic environmental characteristics on patterns of gene flow in declining species, and the relative importance of standing genetic diversity for the survival of small populations of bees in island and continental landscapes. Dr. Rohde uses novel applications of ecological modeling, in addition to cutting-edge genetic and genomic methods, to best leverage available information about rare or endangered species. She works to promote global equity in access to the knowledge and technology necessary to perform conservation research through public education, workshops developed for conservation researchers and resource managers, and written communications.

Contact Information

Dr. Brook G. Milligan
Professor of Biology
Department of Biology
New Mexico State University
Las Cruces, NM
USA
brook@nmsu.edu (this opens in a new tab)

Dr. Ashley T. Rohde
Postdoctoral Researcher
Department of Biology
New Mexico State University
Las Cruces, NM
USA
arohde@nmsu.edu (this opens in a new tab)

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