Braun, Emma Lucy (1889–1971)

US botanist, an early pioneer in recognizing the importance of plant ecology and conservation. Her book Deciduous Forests of Eastern North America 1950 describes the evolution of forest communities and their survival during periods of glaciation.

Born in Cincinnati, Braun studied geology and botany at the University of Cincinnati. She remained in academic positions at the university until 1948, becoming professor of plant ecology in 1946. She lived with her sister Annette Braun (1884–1978), an entomologist, and continued research work until the end of her life, the two setting up a home laboratory and an experimental garden.

Braun's work in ecology concentrated on the vegetation of a selected variety of habitats in Ohio and Kentucky. An early taxonomic study provided a detailed catalogue of the flora of the Cincinnati region, which she then compared with that of the same region a century earlier. This approach became very influential for analysing regional changes in flora over a period of time.

Braun also wrote and campaigned to save natural areas and to create nature reserves.