
Rhiannon Schultz
Rhiannon Schultz
Rhiannon is a doctoral candidate at the University of Georgia, where she studies western lowland gorilla physiology, nutrition, and cardiac health in North American zoos. She earned her bachelor’s degree in biological anthropology from the University of California, San Diego, and her master’s in biology through the Advanced Inquiry Program. Rhiannon is a PEO International Scholar and a recipient of the NSF Non-Academic Research Award, which funded her training and fellowship with the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. Before starting her doctoral work, she served as a Research Coordinator at the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research, where she cultivated her interest in animal welfare and management, science communication, and community engagement. Rhiannon continues to work closely with zoological institutions through her dissertation research and career as an Animal Welfare Consultant with the international consultancy Animal Welfare Expertise.
Rhiannon is passionate about advancing animal welfare for all species. She is especially interested in the role that nutrition plays in the physical and mental wellbeing of animals under human care. Her primary goal is to support animal care and conservation teams by providing the tools, data, and research connections they need to provide optimal welfare for species in their care.