My scholarly interests are diverse, spanning academic and applied, critical and constructive research traditions, as well as the social and biophysical sciences. Themes of ongoing interest include land and environmental governance in the global South; social justice and the distributional effects of conservation/development interventions; state-society relations; and an orientation towards research traditions relevant to policy and practice. My current research draws on published and ethnographic evidence to interrogate global land governance discourses and practices. In addition to these academic pursuits, I am regularly engaged as a visiting lecturer for the International Center for Land Policy Studies and Training Taiwan (where I give a course entitled, ‘Situating the Local in Land Relations’ for the Regular Session on Land Policy for Sustainable Rural Development) and as a land governance consultant for NGOs, consultancy firms, certification schemes and foreign governments.
Prior to my return to academia, I worked as Scientist / Acting Coordinator for an ecoregional action research program hosted by the World Agroforestry Center and the Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa (2002-2007), and as Senior Scientists / Domain Leader for the Center for International Forestry Research in Indonesia (2007-2011). This work is profiled in a book and two edited volumes: Integrated Natural Resource Management in the Highlands of Eastern Africa: From Concept to Practice (Earthscan 2012); Beyond the Biophysical: Knowledge, Culture and Politics in Agriculture and Natural Resource Management (Springer 2010); and Governing Africa’s Forests in a Globalized World (Earthscan 2010).
Education:
PhD, Anthropology, University of Georgia, 2001
