Michael A. Coe, PhD is an ethnobiologist and applied ecologist, and Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Tarleton State University. His research sits at the intersection of plant population ecology and ethnobiology, examining how plant populations respond to chronic human disturbance and how human societies select and manage natural resources.
His fieldwork centres on the Peruvian Amazon, where the Coe Lab works on harvest impact assessment and the restoration of culturally and economically important non-timber forest products, including níshi lianas and the source plants of ayahuasca. Combining field studies, ethnographic methods and mathematical modelling, his work aims to develop science-based, culturally respectful strategies for sustainable plant medicine production.
Michael completed his PhD at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and was awarded the Richard Evans Schultes Research Award by the Society of Economic Botany in 2016. He is the author of peer-reviewed research in journals including Journal of Applied Ecology, People and Nature, Human Ecology, Economic Botany and the Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, and of book chapters for Springer and Synergetic Press.
Presentations
- Integral Projection Models: a road map for sustainable ayahuasca production — ESPD 55, 2022
- Speaking at ESPD 60 — 2027
- Pacha Nishi Project, Ayahuasca Cultivation, and Amazonian Restoration — Brainforest Café, 2026
- Honoring Dennis McKenna’s Lifetime of Enduring Plant Wisdom, Mentorship, and Inspiration to the Next Generation — Brainforest Café, 2026
Chapters
- Michael A. Coe and Orou G. Gaoue. “Toward a road map for sustainable ayahuasca production using integral projection models”, in Ethnopharmacologic Search for Psychoactive Drugs, Vol. III. Synergetic Press, 2025.
- Michael A. Coe and Dennis J. McKenna. “The Therapeutic Potential of Ayahuasca”, in Evidence-Based Herbal and Nutritional Treatments for Anxiety in Psychiatric Disorders, pp. 123–137. Springer, 2017.
Selected papers
- Coe, M. A. and Gaoue, O. G. “Increased clonal growth in heavily harvested ecosystems failed to rescue ayahuasca lianas from decline in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest”. Journal of Applied Ecology, 2023.
- Coe, M. A. and Gaoue, O. G. “Phylogeny explains why less therapeutically redundant plant species are not necessarily facing greater use pressure”. People and Nature, 2021.
- Coe, M. A. and Gaoue, O. G. “Cultural keystone species revisited: are we asking the right questions?”. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 2020.
- Coe, M. A. and Gaoue, O. G. “Most cultural importance indices do not predict species’ cultural keystone status”. Human Ecology, 2020.
- Gaoue, O. G., Coe, M. A., Bond, M., Hart, G., Seyler, B. and McMillen, H. “Theories and major hypotheses in ethnobotany”. Economic Botany, 2017.
Further reading
- The Importance of Ethnobiology: Ayahuasca Sustainability, Biognosis, and a Balanced Coexistence between Humanity and Nature
- What Is Ethnobotany? The Study of How Cultures Use Plants
Course
- People and Plants: Ethnobotany in the 21st Century — 6 modules, 26 lessons, foundational level. Available in the Living Library.
Podcasts
- Brainforest Café Podcast with Michael Coe (Ep#10), April 2024
Listen to the episode and read the transcript - Brainforest Café Podcast with Michael Coe – Part 1 (Ep#51), January 2026
Listen to the episode and read the transcript - Brainforest Café Podcast with Michael Coe – Part 2 (Ep#53), February 2026
Listen to the episode and read the transcript
