Heidi Colleran
@heidicolleran.bsky.social
Anthropologist at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. https://www.eva.mpg.de/ecology/staff/heidi-colleran/ Culture | Demography |Reproduction | Population | Existential dread. Humanist and scientist. Writing a book THE FACTS OF LIFE
Pinned
Heidi Colleran
@heidicolleran.bsky.social
· Apr 12
With the world turning away from diversity we need public anthropology more than ever. I’ve decided to do my bit to share what we know about cultures of reproduction & why they matter for human evolution. PEOPLE LIKE US coming in 2027 🙏🏻 @zcosini.bsky.social
A central question for any evolutionary research program on humans: what is a population?
Excited to finally have this article out with @robingnelson.blacksky.app. Although we have nominally centered populations as our unit of evolutionary analysis in biological anthropology, we have no coherent understanding of what a population is. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
The Population Problem: Biological Anthropology and the Many Definitions of a Population
Objectives With a focus on variability, biological anthropology has nominally centered the population as a key unit of analysis and node of evolutionary change. In this paper, we examine constructio...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
October 23, 2025 at 2:59 PM
A central question for any evolutionary research program on humans: what is a population?
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
we have to figure out how to act like we are all each other’s makers—because, inevitably, we are
Faculty Writing: @reproutopia "That Wild “Wired” Article Is Not a Case Against Surrogacy" for @thenation | www.thenation.com/article/soci...
September 21, 2025 at 6:32 PM
we have to figure out how to act like we are all each other’s makers—because, inevitably, we are
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
Childcare is a public good. The return on investment is high (and VERY well-documented). It benefits children, mothers, families, businesses, and the economy.
The lack of a robust childcare infrastructure is a choice the U.S. has made. We could make a different one.
www.wbur.org/cognoscenti/...
The lack of a robust childcare infrastructure is a choice the U.S. has made. We could make a different one.
www.wbur.org/cognoscenti/...
Will America finally treat child care as a public good? Some states are about to find out
In November, New Mexico will become the first state to offer free daycare for children as young as 6 weeks. On the other side of the country, child care is a key issue in New York City's mayoral elect...
www.wbur.org
October 15, 2025 at 5:45 PM
Childcare is a public good. The return on investment is high (and VERY well-documented). It benefits children, mothers, families, businesses, and the economy.
The lack of a robust childcare infrastructure is a choice the U.S. has made. We could make a different one.
www.wbur.org/cognoscenti/...
The lack of a robust childcare infrastructure is a choice the U.S. has made. We could make a different one.
www.wbur.org/cognoscenti/...
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
Dr. Jane Goodall filmed an interview with Netflix in March 2025 that she understood would only be released after her death.
October 5, 2025 at 9:08 AM
Dr. Jane Goodall filmed an interview with Netflix in March 2025 that she understood would only be released after her death.
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
OTD in 1838, Charles Darwin read Malthus’s Principles of Population “for amusement.”
The idea of a “war of nature” was venerable, but D realized that such a war would tend to remove deleterious variations from populations. Natural selection would necessarily follow.
🌱🐋🧪#HistSTM #philsci 📈📉#evolbio
The idea of a “war of nature” was venerable, but D realized that such a war would tend to remove deleterious variations from populations. Natural selection would necessarily follow.
🌱🐋🧪#HistSTM #philsci 📈📉#evolbio
September 28, 2025 at 3:28 PM
OTD in 1838, Charles Darwin read Malthus’s Principles of Population “for amusement.”
The idea of a “war of nature” was venerable, but D realized that such a war would tend to remove deleterious variations from populations. Natural selection would necessarily follow.
🌱🐋🧪#HistSTM #philsci 📈📉#evolbio
The idea of a “war of nature” was venerable, but D realized that such a war would tend to remove deleterious variations from populations. Natural selection would necessarily follow.
🌱🐋🧪#HistSTM #philsci 📈📉#evolbio
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
We're hiring! WSU anthropology is looking to hire a TT Asst Prof in cultural anthropology, with a health, well-being, or human-environment interactions. This is a great dept with friendly folks! CV and cover letter due by 11/2 wsu.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/WSU_Jo...
Assistant Professor
Online applications must be received before 11:59pm on: November 2, 2025 If a date is not listed above, review the Applicant Instructions below for more details. Available Title(s): 270-NN_FACULTY - A...
wsu.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com
September 26, 2025 at 8:22 PM
We're hiring! WSU anthropology is looking to hire a TT Asst Prof in cultural anthropology, with a health, well-being, or human-environment interactions. This is a great dept with friendly folks! CV and cover letter due by 11/2 wsu.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/WSU_Jo...
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
Abortion bans making pregnancy more dangerous, shaming women for using tylenol, making the world more dangerous for babies: this is all pronatalist because pronatalism is about recreating mandatory childbearing, not making childbearing easier.
September 22, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Abortion bans making pregnancy more dangerous, shaming women for using tylenol, making the world more dangerous for babies: this is all pronatalist because pronatalism is about recreating mandatory childbearing, not making childbearing easier.
Oh cool let’s make it even harder for pregnant women to get through their day. Maybe they should all give up working to focus on…..wait a minute…🧐
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Trump officials unveil highly contentious conclusions on autism
Trump claims acetaminophen heightens autism risk when used by pregnant women but studies contradict statement
www.theguardian.com
September 22, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Oh cool let’s make it even harder for pregnant women to get through their day. Maybe they should all give up working to focus on…..wait a minute…🧐
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
An amazing opportunity with great multidisciplinary colleagues in the wonderful pink city of Toulouse
It's hiring season at @iast.fr!
- 2y research postdoc contract
- Full autonomy, you are your own PI
- Awesome multidisciplinary environment
- All social and behavioral sciences welcome
- Seed funding for projects and workshops
- Gorgeous city in the south of France
www.iast.fr/research-fel...
- 2y research postdoc contract
- Full autonomy, you are your own PI
- Awesome multidisciplinary environment
- All social and behavioral sciences welcome
- Seed funding for projects and workshops
- Gorgeous city in the south of France
www.iast.fr/research-fel...
September 20, 2025 at 9:20 AM
An amazing opportunity with great multidisciplinary colleagues in the wonderful pink city of Toulouse
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
Released today!
SEVEN DECADES: HOW WE EVOLVED TO LIVE LONGER
Now available at your favorite bookseller.
Leave a review on Goodreads or Amazon if you can.
Please help spread the word!
#sevendecades @princetonupress.bsky.social
SEVEN DECADES: HOW WE EVOLVED TO LIVE LONGER
Now available at your favorite bookseller.
Leave a review on Goodreads or Amazon if you can.
Please help spread the word!
#sevendecades @princetonupress.bsky.social
September 16, 2025 at 11:56 PM
Released today!
SEVEN DECADES: HOW WE EVOLVED TO LIVE LONGER
Now available at your favorite bookseller.
Leave a review on Goodreads or Amazon if you can.
Please help spread the word!
#sevendecades @princetonupress.bsky.social
SEVEN DECADES: HOW WE EVOLVED TO LIVE LONGER
Now available at your favorite bookseller.
Leave a review on Goodreads or Amazon if you can.
Please help spread the word!
#sevendecades @princetonupress.bsky.social
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
At @ishe-society.bsky.social, we are looking for someone to review @mgurven.bsky.social new book, "Seven decades" for Human Ethology. It looks terribly interesting! DM/email for details (and to get a hard copy 😊)
@princetonupress.bsky.social
press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...
@princetonupress.bsky.social
press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...
Seven Decades
An anthropologist uncovers new evidence for the evolutionary origins of human longevity—and explains why growing old is an opportunity, not a burden
press.princeton.edu
September 17, 2025 at 5:28 AM
At @ishe-society.bsky.social, we are looking for someone to review @mgurven.bsky.social new book, "Seven decades" for Human Ethology. It looks terribly interesting! DM/email for details (and to get a hard copy 😊)
@princetonupress.bsky.social
press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...
@princetonupress.bsky.social
press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
"paper argues for the reintegration of mortality into studies of fertility transition by using net reproduction measures rather than total fertility rates. Incorporating mortality provides a more nuanced understanding of demographic transitions & has important implications for population policies"
Bringing mortality back into our understanding of fertility change: revisiting the onset of fertility transitions using net reproduction measures - Journal of Population Research
This paper argues for the reintegration of mortality into studies of fertility transition by using net reproduction measures rather than solely focusing on total fertility rates (TFR). Accounting for ...
link.springer.com
September 15, 2025 at 10:53 AM
"paper argues for the reintegration of mortality into studies of fertility transition by using net reproduction measures rather than total fertility rates. Incorporating mortality provides a more nuanced understanding of demographic transitions & has important implications for population policies"
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
Unveiling Mexico's Demographic Transitions: "Our spatial analysis reveals a concentric diffusion pattern, where fertility changes spread outward from urban, high-SES municipalities" onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
<em>Studies in Family Planning</em> | Population Council Journal | Wiley Online Library
This study examines Mexico's fertility transition (1930–2015) and how socioeconomic status (SES), geography, and indigeneity shaped reproductive behaviors. Using net fertility—the number of surviving...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
September 12, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Unveiling Mexico's Demographic Transitions: "Our spatial analysis reveals a concentric diffusion pattern, where fertility changes spread outward from urban, high-SES municipalities" onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
An absolute privilege to interview the scientist Sarah Blaffer Hrdy for @hpspodcast.bsky.social
She was so generous & honest in talking about the shifts she had to experience in order to 'see' that men could be expert carers of babies #philsci #hps #fathertime
She was so generous & honest in talking about the shifts she had to experience in order to 'see' that men could be expert carers of babies #philsci #hps #fathertime
This week, @samaragreenwood.bsky.social returns to The HPS Podcast with a special guest: renowned primatologist and evolutionary anthropologist Sarah Blaffer Hrdy. Their interview, “Rethinking Our Starting Assumptions,” is available now — link below!
#hps #science
#hps #science
S5 E6 - Sarah Blaffer Hrdy on ‘Rethinking our Starting Assumptions’
Podcast Episode · The HPS Podcast - Conversations from History, Philosophy and Social Studies of Science · 21/08/2025 · 29m
podcasts.apple.com
August 22, 2025 at 11:02 PM
An absolute privilege to interview the scientist Sarah Blaffer Hrdy for @hpspodcast.bsky.social
She was so generous & honest in talking about the shifts she had to experience in order to 'see' that men could be expert carers of babies #philsci #hps #fathertime
She was so generous & honest in talking about the shifts she had to experience in order to 'see' that men could be expert carers of babies #philsci #hps #fathertime
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
Starting the week strong 💪 we share now the plenary talk of @heidicolleran.bsky.social, which was part of @ehbea2025.bsky.social
Here, she talks about the misconceptions and the biases behind the idea of “natural fertility”👶
Pass by, have a look, and stay tuned!
youtu.be/8Ch1t7zpW10?...
Here, she talks about the misconceptions and the biases behind the idea of “natural fertility”👶
Pass by, have a look, and stay tuned!
youtu.be/8Ch1t7zpW10?...
Heidi Colleran - EHBEA 2025
YouTube video by European Human Behaviour and Evolution Association
youtu.be
August 25, 2025 at 9:01 AM
Starting the week strong 💪 we share now the plenary talk of @heidicolleran.bsky.social, which was part of @ehbea2025.bsky.social
Here, she talks about the misconceptions and the biases behind the idea of “natural fertility”👶
Pass by, have a look, and stay tuned!
youtu.be/8Ch1t7zpW10?...
Here, she talks about the misconceptions and the biases behind the idea of “natural fertility”👶
Pass by, have a look, and stay tuned!
youtu.be/8Ch1t7zpW10?...
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
👋 Create links with the IAST community: either with alumni, or with current research fellows...
If you are part of the IAST community and would like to be added to the starter kit, send us a DM! 📩 #FriendsOfIAST
👇 Join the conversation ! 👇
go.bsky.app/5mQmnLF
If you are part of the IAST community and would like to be added to the starter kit, send us a DM! 📩 #FriendsOfIAST
👇 Join the conversation ! 👇
go.bsky.app/5mQmnLF
July 1, 2025 at 6:37 AM
👋 Create links with the IAST community: either with alumni, or with current research fellows...
If you are part of the IAST community and would like to be added to the starter kit, send us a DM! 📩 #FriendsOfIAST
👇 Join the conversation ! 👇
go.bsky.app/5mQmnLF
If you are part of the IAST community and would like to be added to the starter kit, send us a DM! 📩 #FriendsOfIAST
👇 Join the conversation ! 👇
go.bsky.app/5mQmnLF
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
Even more linguistic-cultural diversity! I am truly grateful for this beautiful experience of fieldwork & learning along with Anja Becker. This is all possible thanks to the hospitality and trust of the community of Dixon Reef, Vanuatu #MULTILING-HIST @erc.europa.eu @heidicolleran.bsky.social
August 23, 2025 at 3:51 AM
Even more linguistic-cultural diversity! I am truly grateful for this beautiful experience of fieldwork & learning along with Anja Becker. This is all possible thanks to the hospitality and trust of the community of Dixon Reef, Vanuatu #MULTILING-HIST @erc.europa.eu @heidicolleran.bsky.social
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
JOB: come work with me @uni-konstanz.de ! We have a junior professorship to fill from 1 April 2026 (6 years, non-tenured, as funding comes from the Centre for Cultural Inquiry).
The denomination is very timely: Environmental #Anthropology!
Details ⬇️
stellen.uni-konstanz.de/jobposting/2...
#academia
The denomination is very timely: Environmental #Anthropology!
Details ⬇️
stellen.uni-konstanz.de/jobposting/2...
#academia
Junior Professorship (non-tenure) in Environmental Anthropology
Deadline: 01.10.2025
stellen.uni-konstanz.de
August 20, 2025 at 10:06 PM
JOB: come work with me @uni-konstanz.de ! We have a junior professorship to fill from 1 April 2026 (6 years, non-tenured, as funding comes from the Centre for Cultural Inquiry).
The denomination is very timely: Environmental #Anthropology!
Details ⬇️
stellen.uni-konstanz.de/jobposting/2...
#academia
The denomination is very timely: Environmental #Anthropology!
Details ⬇️
stellen.uni-konstanz.de/jobposting/2...
#academia
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
The last piece associated with the brilliant team effort to rethink aDNA results and social relations in Neolithic Ireland is in this month’s Current Archaeology magazine with an absolutely gorgeous cover image of Newgrange (credit: Ken Williams) archaeology.co.uk
Current Archaeology
Britain's favourite archaeology magazine
archaeology.co.uk
August 14, 2025 at 7:33 AM
The last piece associated with the brilliant team effort to rethink aDNA results and social relations in Neolithic Ireland is in this month’s Current Archaeology magazine with an absolutely gorgeous cover image of Newgrange (credit: Ken Williams) archaeology.co.uk
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
Mi hapi tumas mo tenkyu long janis blong wok wetem National Museum mo direktor Kaitip Kami mo wetem Kalja Senta long Vanuatu! Hemia daerekt patnasip wetem tim blong @heidicolleran.bsky.social long MPI-EVA we i gat longfala ekspiriens blong mekem risej long Malekula mo ol narafala ples long Vanuatu.
August 14, 2025 at 4:40 AM
Mi hapi tumas mo tenkyu long janis blong wok wetem National Museum mo direktor Kaitip Kami mo wetem Kalja Senta long Vanuatu! Hemia daerekt patnasip wetem tim blong @heidicolleran.bsky.social long MPI-EVA we i gat longfala ekspiriens blong mekem risej long Malekula mo ol narafala ples long Vanuatu.
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
It's time to play, "1900, or 2025?"
From: Maria-Sophia Quine, Population Politics in Twentieth Century Europe (1996).
From: Maria-Sophia Quine, Population Politics in Twentieth Century Europe (1996).
August 10, 2025 at 3:17 PM
It's time to play, "1900, or 2025?"
From: Maria-Sophia Quine, Population Politics in Twentieth Century Europe (1996).
From: Maria-Sophia Quine, Population Politics in Twentieth Century Europe (1996).
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
Essay which clearly outlines the scientific and ethical problems with selecting embryos for polygenic traits. Scientists associating themselves with embryo selection companies, and those who’ve previously defended sociogenomics but are staying silent on these companies, come in for criticism here
August 10, 2025 at 4:12 PM
Essay which clearly outlines the scientific and ethical problems with selecting embryos for polygenic traits. Scientists associating themselves with embryo selection companies, and those who’ve previously defended sociogenomics but are staying silent on these companies, come in for criticism here
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
The great Jane Lancaster has passed away. She was a titan and very kind to me all the years I was at UNM. See a tribute from her friend and mine, Bob Hitchcock here:
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Jane Lancaster and Human Nature - Human Nature
Human Nature -
link.springer.com
August 5, 2025 at 5:01 PM
The great Jane Lancaster has passed away. She was a titan and very kind to me all the years I was at UNM. See a tribute from her friend and mine, Bob Hitchcock here:
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
Jane Lancaster (1935-2025), a major figure in the development of human behavioral ecology, passed away yesterday. Jane was on my PhD committee and was always supportive of me and my work. She will be missed.
Here is the In Memoriam posted by UNM Anthropology:
anthropology.unm.edu/news-events/...
Here is the In Memoriam posted by UNM Anthropology:
anthropology.unm.edu/news-events/...
In Memoriam: Dr. Jane Lancaster, Pioneer in Human Evolutionary Sciences (1935-2025) ::
Anthropology | The University of New Mexico
anthropology.unm.edu
August 5, 2025 at 4:52 PM
Jane Lancaster (1935-2025), a major figure in the development of human behavioral ecology, passed away yesterday. Jane was on my PhD committee and was always supportive of me and my work. She will be missed.
Here is the In Memoriam posted by UNM Anthropology:
anthropology.unm.edu/news-events/...
Here is the In Memoriam posted by UNM Anthropology:
anthropology.unm.edu/news-events/...
Reposted by Heidi Colleran
