Curriculum Vitae
Wesley M. Knapp
Botanist, conservation scientist, and Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Plant Conservation.
Current position
2025–present
Chief Executive Officer
Center for Plant Conservation
Research appointments
Research Associate, Missouri Botanical Garden
Herbarium Research Associate, UNC Chapel Hill Herbarium
Scientific leadership
Flora of North America Association
Board of Directors
BGCI Living Collections Database
Advisory Group
Education
Ph.D. in Ecology · 2024
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Dissertation: The Importance of Taxonomy, Species Discovery, and Prioritization in Preventing Plant Extinctions.
Advisor: Dr. Alan S. Weakley
M.S. in Plant Science, Plant Systematics · 2005
Delaware State University
Thesis: Taxonomy, Morphology, and Geographic Distribution of Juncus longii (Juncaceae).
Advisor: Dr. Robert F.C. Naczi
B.S. in Environmental Sciences · 2001
Catawba College
Minor in Chemistry
Professional experience
2025–PRESENT
Chief Executive Officer
Center for Plant Conservation
2021–2025
Chief Botanist
NatureServe
2016–2021
Mountains Ecologist/Botanist
North Carolina Natural Heritage Program
2008–2016 · Eastern Region Heritage Ecologist/Botanist, Maryland Natural Heritage Program
2002–2008 · Eastern Region Heritage Biologist/Botanist, Maryland Natural Heritage Program
2001–2002 · Field Botanist, Maryland Natural Heritage Program
Summer 2000 · Field Botanist/Botanical Instructor Intern, Missouri Department of Conservation
Appointments & scientific leadership
2026–PRESENT
Living Collections Database Advisory Group
Botanic Gardens Conservation International
2024–PRESENT
Board of Directors
Flora of North America Association
2021–PRESENT
Research Associate
Missouri Botanical Garden
2016–PRESENT
Herbarium Research Associate
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Herbarium
Additional leadership: Ethics in Plant Nomenclature Special Purpose Committee; Southeastern plant conservation leadership and planning; Vascular Plant Technical Committee, Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program / Western Pennsylvania Conservancy.
Awards
2020 Conservation Champion, Center for Plant Conservation
2019 Mt. Cuba Center funding award for phylogenetic study of pedicellate Trillium
2012 W.E. Buker Travel Award, Carnegie Museum of Natural History
2001 Catawba College Environmental Science Award
Selected publications & books
Carver, D., et al. 2026.
Conservation gap analysis for wild grapevines (Vitis L.) of the Americas. Plants, People, Planet. 1–21.
Brockington, S.F., et al. 2026.
High-performance living plant collections require a globally integrated data ecosystem to meet twenty-first-century challenges. Nature Plants 12: 18–25.
Koontz, A.C., et al. [accepted].
Assessing the population genetics of Quercus tardifolia and other red oaks in west Texas.
Knapp, W.M., et al. [in review].
Plants of One Known Occurrence Identify Immediate Priorities for Preventing Extinction. Conservation Biology.
Knapp, W.M. & J.R. Carter. 2024.
Juncus snowii (Juncaceae), a New Rare Species Endemic to the Altamaha Grit of Georgia, U.S.A. Novon 32: 70–75.
Knapp, W.M., et al. 2021.
Vascular plant extinction in the continental United States and Canada. Conservation Biology 35: 360–368.
2022
The Conservation Status of Trillium in North America
Meredith, C., et al.
2021
Vascular Plants of Maryland, USA
Knapp, W.M. & R.F.C. Naczi
Selected lectures & keynotes
MAY 2026
The Future for Plant Conservation
National Botany Symposium · Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History · Washington, D.C.
17 JULY 2025
Why Plant Conservation Matters and Why Now
Keynote · Texas Plant Conservation Conference · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Austin
9 Aug 2023 · “The Race Against Plant Extinction,” Polly Hill Arboretum
26 Apr 2023 · “The Race Against Plant Extinction,” Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden
17 Nov 2020 · “Vascular Plant Extinctions in the Continental United States and Canada,” New York Botanical Garden
24 Oct 2019 · “Trillium: towards a systematic revision,” Mt. Cuba Center, with Aaron Floden
17 Mar 2018 · “Vascular Plant Extinction in North America north of Mexico,” North American Rock Garden Society
Wesley Knapp 