Erika Friedmann is a Professor at the University of Maryland School of Nursing. She has been conducting research on the health benefits of the of the human-companion animal bond for people since the 1970s. Her seminal research showed that the pet ownership is associated with improved one-year survival of heart disease patients. Since then she conducted numerous studies exploring the interrelationship of stress, pet ownership, and blood pressure. The findings of her original research were confirmed in a follow-up study that was published in 1995. Erika is a founding member of the International Society of Anthrozoology (ISAZ), a group of researchers, institutions, and others who are interested in the study of the human-animal relationship. She currently serves as the president of ISAZ. Erika has a strong commitment to furthering and strengthening anthrozoological research. She is an active researcher, conducting NIH funded research and contributing over 60 papers to interdisciplinary refereed journals. She also mentors students in anthrozoological and cardiovascular research. Erika holds a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Pennsylvania. For over two decades she was a faculty member at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York, serving as chair of the Department of Health and Nutrition Sciences from 1992 to 2003.