Dr. Lucy Spelman is a veterinarian working to bring artists and scientists together to save species. Animals have always been part of her life. Since 2010, when she began teaching biology to students at the Rhode Island School of Design, she has been exploring the interface between art, science, and one-health medicine. She has an undergraduate degree in biology from Brown University and a doctoral degree in veterinary medicine from the University of California at Davis. In 1994, she became a member of the American College of Zoological Medicine, the first to achieve this milestone right out of residency training. Her work experience includes zoo, wildlife, and small animal medicine; public speaking; writing; teaching; zoo administration—she served as the first female Director of the Smithsonian’s National Zoo from 2000-2005; and, conservation—she was the Field Manager for the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project from 2006-2009. She has authored various scientific articles and two popular books: the National Geographic Animal Encyclopedia and The Rhino with Glue-on Shoes.

In 2015, Dr. Lucy founded, Creature Conserve (www.creatureconserve.com), a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing artists and scientists together to foster informed and sustained animal conservation. She currently practices at Ocean State Veterinary Specialists, teaches at RISD, and also serves on the boards of the Wildlife Rehabilitators Association of Rhode Island, the Art of Conservation, and the Karanambu Trust. In her TEDx talk, “Art Can Save a Panda” she makes a case for greater public engagement in conservation through the arts. Using examples, including work by her students RISD, she shows us that art and science together reach a wider audience with a more inclusive message.