Dr. Jessica Ware is a curator at the American Museum of Natural History where she serves as Chair of the Division of Invertebrate Zoology. Dr. Ware’s research focuses on the evolution of behavioral and physiological adaptations in insects, with an emphasis on how these occur in Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) and Dictyoptera (termites, cockroaches, and mantises).

She holds a BSc from the University of British Columbia in Canada, and a PhD from Rutgers, New Brunswick. She was awarded a PECASE medal from the US government for her work on insect evolution. Dr. Ware served on the Governing Board of the Entomological Society of America for 3 years. She served as Director of Diversity Equity and Inclusion at the Society of Systematic Biologists for 3 years. Dr. Ware is past president of the Worldwide Dragonfly Association, past president of the Entomological Society of America, and immediate past president of the Society of Systematic Biologists. Dr. Ware is co-founder of Entomologists of Color and serves on the board of Black in Natural History Museums.