My research and teaching center on the theme of ‘just transitions’ in agri-food systems, asking how sustainability efforts can generate more equitable and inclusive multispecies futures.
My work focuses on the uneven and contested processes of climate change adaptation and mitigation in agri-food contexts. Much of my research is conducted with rural communities, examining how climate change and efforts to address it influence livelihoods, land-use practices, and wellbeing. I also engage actors across scales through multi-sited ethnographies and employ more-than-human methodologies.
My work is conceptually grounded in political ecology, the environmental humanities, and critical food studies. My research and teaching are place-based, often examining the historical processes that condition contemporary agri-food systems and efforts to make them ‘better’—including their inequities, vulnerabilities, and exclusions. I also focus on efforts of ‘ground-up’ agri-food transformation that aim to rework exclusionary systems.
My research is interdisciplinary and aims to generate insights towards more equitable agri-food policy and practice amidst climate change. My four main projects examine: (1) Climate-smart agriculture and Green Revolution development policies in Rwanda; (2) Agri-food sustainability transitions in Europe with a focus on dairy and almonds; (3) Forest restoration as a ‘Nature-based Solution’ to climate change in Central Africa; and (4) The intersections of climate change and plant pathogens in Southern Europe.
