Mary Elmendorf

Anthropologist Mary Elmendorf, PhD, has written eight books and technical reports and over 50 published articles. She received the Margaret Mead Award in 1982, as did her colleague Brigitte Jordan a few years earlier. Together with other Quaker volunteers, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1947. Among her diverse research and publication interests are the fuel, water and sanitation needs of women in slums and rural areas. Dr. Elmendorf believes that access to these basic needs as well as safe and natural birth in a caring situation should be available to all. She considers information about birth control and family planning one of the basic human rights, for which she has always had a deep concern.