← About the Foundation
Photo — Mike Lovett, Brandeis University Photographer
Photo — Mike Lovett, Brandeis University Photographer
Founder & Principal Investigator
Dr. Irene Pepperberg
Research Professor (Adjunct), Boston University · President, The Alex Foundation
For nearly five decades, Dr. Pepperberg's work with Grey parrots — beginning with Alex in 1977 — has reshaped how science understands the minds of nonhuman animals.
Research interests
Irene Pepperberg studies Grey parrots. The main focus of her work is to determine the cognitive and communicative abilities of these birds, and to compare them with those of great apes, marine mammals, and young children. She studies the mechanisms of their learning as well as the outcomes.
Education
- Ph.D., Chemical Physics — Harvard University, 1976
- M.A., Chemistry — Harvard University, 1971
- S.B., Chemistry — Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1969
Positions
- Research Professor (Adjunct), Dept. of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Boston University, 2022–present
- President, The Alex Foundation, 1992–present
- Honorary Advisor, Ocean Park Hong Kong, 2023–present
- Affiliate Faculty, Animal Behavior & Conservation Program, Hunter College, CUNY, 2013–present
- Associate / Research Associate, Dept. of Psychology, Harvard University, 2005–2021
- Senior Lecturer, Brain & Cognitive Sciences, MIT, 2018
- Instructor & Lecturer, Dept. of Psychology, Harvard University, 2007–2017
- Radcliffe Institute Fellow, 2004–2005
- Adjunct Associate Professor, Brandeis University, 2004–2013
- Research Associate Professor, Brandeis University, 2002–2004
- Research Scientist, MIT School of Architecture & Planning / Media Lab, 2001–2004
- Visiting Associate Professor, MIT Media Lab, 1999–2001
- Associate Professor (tenured), Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, 1991–2001 (joint appointment in Psychology; Affiliate in Neuroscience)
- Visiting Assistant Professor, Anthropology, Northwestern University, 1984–1991
- Research Associate in Biology, Purdue University, 1979–1984
- Postdoctoral research in animal–human communication, Purdue University, 1977–1979
Selected research grants
- Another Light Foundation, 2026–2027
- Richard Lounsbery Foundation, 2024–2025
- National Science Foundation — multiple awards spanning 1979–2011 (BNS and IBN programs, with REU supplements)
- Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation Fellowships, 1982–1984
- Whitehall Foundation Grant-in-Aid, 1992
- Kenneth Scott Charitable Trust Research Award, 2000–2001
- Corning Family Foundation Grant, 2001
Honors & awards
View selected honors & awards
- Coller-Dolittle Foundation, Lifetime Achievement Award, 2026
- American Psychological Association, Division 3, Lifetime Achievement Award, 2025
- Women in Technology International Hall of Fame Award, 2024
- Comparative Cognition Society Research Award, 2020
- Nominee, Clifford T. Morgan Distinguished Leadership Award, Psychonomic Society, 2020
- Marquand Award for Excellence in Advising and Support, Harvard University, 2019
- Nominee, Atkinson Prize in Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, National Academy of Sciences, 2019 / 2021
- Nominee, Star Family Prize for Excellence in Advising, Harvard University, 2019
- MUSE Award (Bronze), American Alliance of Museums, 2017 — "Wild Minds: What Animals Really Think," New York Hall of Science
- Nominee, Exemplar Award, Animal Behavior Society, 2015
- Christopher Clavius, S.J. Award, Sigma Xi, Saint Joseph's University, 2013
- Harvard University Certificate of Teaching Excellence, 2010 / 2012 / 2015
- Christopher Award, 2009 — for Alex & Me
- Fellow, Eastern Psychological Association, 2009
- Charter Fellow, Midwestern Psychological Association, 2009
- Frank A. Beach Comparative Psychology Award, Division 6, APA, 2005
- Bunting Fellow, Radcliffe Institute, 2004–2005
- Fellow, AAAS, 2001
- Selby Fellowship, Australian Academy of Sciences, 2000
- Fellow, American Psychological Society, 1999
- Fellow, American Ornithologists' Union, 1998
- John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship, 1996
- Fellow, American Psychological Association, 1996
- Fellow, Animal Behavior Society, 1994
Professional activities
View editorial & advisory roles
- Consulting Editor, Learning and Behavior, 2015–present
- Editorial Board, Journal of Comparative Psychology (multiple terms, 1989–present); Associate Editor, 2011–2016
- Associate Editor, Interaction Studies, 2003–present
- Editorial Board, Animal Cognition, 1997–present
- Member-at-Large, APA Division 6 (2018–2021) and Division 3 (2017–2020; 2026–2029)
- METI Advisory Council, 2018–present
- Interspecies Internet, Science Advisory Board, 2025–present
- Board of Directors, Eastern Psychological Association, 2012–2015
- Reviewer for numerous journals and agencies, including Science, Nature, Current Biology, Cognition, and the National Science Foundation
Selected publications
View a selection of recent publications
- Pepperberg, I.M. & Hartsfield, L.A. (2025). A test of inference by exclusion in Grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus): Replication of a parrot–child comparative study using additional avian subjects. J. Comp. Psychol. 140(2):155–159.
- Carroll, A., & Pepperberg, I.M. (2024/2025). Contrafreeloading in umbrella cockatoos (Cacatua alba): Further evaluation of the play hypothesis. J. Comp. Psychol. 139(2):84–97.
- Colbourne, J.A.D., Hanon, L., Pepperberg, I.M., & Auersperg, A.M.I. (2024/2025). Putting the best foot forward: Limb lateralization in the Goffin's cockatoo (Cacatua goffiniana). J. Comp. Psychol. 139(2):98–110.
- Pepperberg, I.M. (2026). Grey parrots: Studies in avian cognition. Encyclopedia of Animal Behavior, pp. 220–231. Elsevier.
- Pepperberg, I.M. (2026). Comments on consciousness in Grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus). Comparative Cognition & Behavior Reviews 21:045–049.
- Pepperberg, I.M. (2024). Comments on "Comparing the productive vocabularies of Grey parrots and young children." Anim. Cogn. 27:79.
- Pepperberg, I.M. & Hartsfield, L-A. (2023). A study of executive function in Grey parrots: Experience can affect delay of gratification. J. Comp. Psychol. 138(1):8–19.
- Smith, G.E., Bastos, A.P.M., Taylor, A.H., & Pepperberg, I.M. (2022). Contrafreeloading in kea (Nestor notabilis) in comparison to Grey parrots (Psittacus erithacus). Sci. Rpts. 12:17415.
- Pepperberg, I.M., & Rosenberger, V. (2022). Delayed gratification: A Grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus) will wait for more tokens. J. Comp. Psychol. 136:79–89.
- Smith, G.E., Greene, D., Hartsfield, L.A., & Pepperberg, I.M. (2021). Initial evidence for contrafreeloading in Grey parrots via the opportunity for playful foraging. J. Comp. Psychol. 135(4):516–533.
Books
- Pepperberg, I.M. (2008). Alex & Me. Collins, New York.
- Pepperberg, I.M. (1999). The Alex Studies: Cognitive and Communicative Abilities of Grey Parrots. Harvard University Press.
- Call, J. (Ed.), Burghardt, G., Pepperberg, I.M., Snowdon, C., Zentall, T.R. (Assoc. Eds.) (2017). APA Handbook of Comparative Psychology. American Psychological Association.
- Balda, R., Pepperberg, I.M. & Kamil, A.C. (Eds.) (1998). Animal Cognition in Nature. Academic Press.
Speaking engagements
To stay up to date on Dr. Pepperberg's schedule of upcoming events, please check her schedule page.