Kelly Ablard

Kelly Ablard, PhD, RA®, EOT®, is a certified Conservation Aromatherapist™ with a
PhD and BSc in Biology (cum laude) and an MSc in Conservation. She is the Founder
and CEO of the NGO Airmid Institute, committed to the global education, research,
sustainable, and traditional use of medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs).

 

Her evidence-based research spans conservation biology, genetics, behavioral ecology, and chemical communication, with fieldwork across the globe. Notable projects include documenting over 60 Peruvian MAPs, uncovering mating behavior in Ooencyrtus kuvanae (featured in Canadian Geographic), identifying toxins in the Critically Endangered slow loris (Nycticebus javanicus), highlighted by the BBC), and reporting on tool use in Critically Endangered orangutans (Pongo spp.).

 

She continues to collaborate on conservation initiatives with the Peruvian Shipibo, and their MAP rosewood (Aniba rosaeodora) and The National University of Tumbes on reforestation of palo santo (Bursera graveolens).

 

Kelly has presented widely across North and South America, Europe, and Asia, and serves as a Community Scientist for Science World in British Columbia. She founded the Urban Apothecary Learning Garden at Vancouver Community College and created the college’s first urban sustainability program, contributing to the accreditation of its nursing program through her expertise in experimental design and statistics.

 

In 2022, she was named an Outstanding Alumnus by Simon Fraser University and
received the 2024 Outstanding Achievement Award from the Alliance of International
Aromatherapists. She is also a fellow of the International Clinical Aromatherapy Network
(ICAN).