Jesse McLaughlin is a PhD student in Environmental Psychology at The Graduate Center.

McLaughlin’s research focuses on urban wildlife conservation, specifically the conservation of migratory birds. He’s interested in urban public space as more-than-human contact zones mediated by institutions, as well as the ways in which migratory species trouble geopolitical boundaries.

As Senior Advocacy Associate at NYC Bird Alliance (formerly named NYC Audubon), he leads grassroots and city- and state-level legislative advocacy for the protection of wild birds and their habitats across the five boroughs.

McLaughlin was awarded a 2022-2024 FAO Schwarz Fellowship for social impact in the environmental field and received his B.A. in Individualized Study from NYU Gallatin.

Research interests: Wildlife conservation; Public space; Governance; Political ecology; Queer geography; Institutions; Migratory birds; Wildness; Endangered species; Ethnography; Qualitative methodology; New York City