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Dasmann (Raymond F.) papers
MS.261
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Table of contents
Language of Material:
English
Contributing Institution:
University of California, Santa Cruz
Title: Raymond F. Dasmann papers
creator:
Dasmann, Raymond Fredric
Identifier/Call Number: MS.261
Identifier/Call Number: 430
Physical Description:
45.58 Linear Feet
72 half cartons, 2 flat boxes
Date (inclusive): 1937-2003
Date (bulk): 1947-1995
Collection is open for research.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Marlene Dasmann, 2010.
This collection is arranged in eight series:
- Series 1: Professional activities
- Series 2: Writings and publications
- Series 3: Correspondence
- Series 4: Teaching files
- Series 5: Education
- Series 6: Research files
- Series 7: Personal and biographical files
- Series 8: Subject files
Raymond F. Dasmann was a distinguished biologist whose innovations in the field of conservation biology influenced the environmental
movement of the 1960's and 70's. His early research focused on California deer populations and wild game in Africa, however
his work also dealt with natural resource management and the way human populations interact with their surrounding ecosystems.
He held senior positions in international organizations such as the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and
UNESCO, where he inaugurated the Man and the Biosphere Programme in 1971. In addition to his work with environmental organizations,
Dasmann was also committed to teaching younger generations about the importance of ecological sustainability. He held teaching
positions at the University of Minnesota and Humboldt State University, and was professor of Environmental Studies at the
University of California Santa Cruz until his retirement in 1989. Dasmann's textbook,
Environmental Conservation, first published in 1959, has become a fundamental text in undergraduate courses and is now in its fifth edition. His other
publications include
The Last Horizon (1963),
The Destruction of California (1964),
Planet in Peril (1971), and
The Conservation Alternative (1973).
Dasmann was born in San Francisco on May 27, 1919. He attended Lowell high school in San Francisco and then began his undergraduate
career at San Francisco State College. He served in the United States Army during World War II before finishing his undergraduate
work at the University of California Berkeley in 1948. He continued his education at UC Berkeley under the mentorship of A.
Starker Leopold in the Zoology program. With his research on deer populations in California, Dasmann received his Master of
Arts in 1951 and his Ph.D. in Zoology in 1954.
Dasmann taught at the University of Minnesota from 1953 to 1954 before taking up a position at Humboldt State University.
While there, he served as the Chairman of the Division of Natural Resources while also teaching a number of subjects including
range ecology, fishery management, oceanography, and more. Dasmann left Humboldt State in 1965 and worked for a number of
natural resource organizations. He was the Director of International Programs at the Conservation Foundation in Washington,
D.C. from 1966 to 1970. It was also during this time that he served as a Senior Ecologist for the International Union for
the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Dasmann was also a consultant for UNESCO, where in 1971 he developed the Man and the Biosphere
Programme - an important initiative, which still exists today, to investigate the relationship between humans and ecology.
Throughout his career, Dasmann was involved in a number of organizations including Friends of the Earth, the Earth Island
Institute, and the World Conservation Union. For his influential work, Dasmann received awards such as the Browning Medal
for Conserving the Environment from the Smithsonian Institution in 1974 and the Leopold Medal and Award from the Wildlife
Society in 1979. He continuously participated in conferences and symposia such as the 1972 Stockholm Conference on the Human
Environment. He wrote numerous reports and papers for these events, as well as hundreds of articles which were published in
major journals. His books include
The Last Horizon (1963),
The Destruction of California (1964),
Planet in Peril (1971), and
The Conservation Alternative (1973). He also published an autobiography titled
Called by the Wild in 2002.
Dasmann passed away at the age of 83 on November 5, 2002 in Santa Cruz, California. He was married to Elizabeth Dasmann, with
whom he raised three daughters.
References:
Jarrell, Randall, ed.
Raymond F. Dasmann: A Life in Conservation Biology (Santa Cruz, CA: University of California Santa Cruz, University Library, 2000).
Woo, Elaine. "Raymond F. Dasmann, 83; A Founding Father of Environmentalism,"
Los Angeles Times November 9, 2002. Accessed 10 October, 2016. http://articles.latimes.com/2002/nov/09/local/me-dasmann9
Raymond F. Dasmann papers, MS261, Special Collections and Archives, University Library, University of California, Santa Cruz.
Collection processed by Maggie Wander in the Center for Archival Research and Training (CART) with assistance from Alix Norton,
2016. Most titles in this collection were derived from the original folder titles as received from the donor.
To access the full-text PDF of Ray Dasmann's oral history on eScholarship, click the link below:
Raymond F. Dasmann: A Life in Conservation Biology
This collection contains papers which document the career of conservation biologist Raymond F. Dasmann, covering his career
as a professor of Environmental Studies at the University of California, his field research and publications, and his professional
activities for a number of environmental organizations. The collection includes drafts and manuscripts and reprints of his
numerous books, journal articles, and reports; correspondence with editors, publishers, and colleagues; field notes and maps
from his research; teaching materials such as lecture notes, syllabi, and course readers; materials from his participation
in numerous conferences and symposia; biographical material including resumes and obituaries; manuscripts of his writings
and research during graduate school; personal materials including his calendars and planners; and research materials that
informed his own work. The forms of materials in this collection include journals, notebooks, newspaper clippings, magazine
and journal articles, correspondence, photographs, and manuscripts.
Copyright for portions of this collection resides with the Regents of the University of California. The publication or use
of any work protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use for research or educational purposes requires written permission
from the copyright owner. UCSC Special Collections and Archives can grant permission to publish materials to which it holds
the copyright. For permission to reproduce or publish the material, or to order a reproduction, please visit
guides.library.ucsc.edu/speccoll/reproduction-publication .
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Conservation biology
Conservation of natural resources
Ecologists -- United States
Faculty papers
Biologists -- United States
Conservationists -- United States
University of California, Santa Cruz. Environmental Studies Dept