I am a development sociologist with more than a dozen peer-reviewed publications on issues pertaining to global justice and sustainable development. I have worked in several world regions and possess significant expertise in anti-racist, anti-colonial, and feminist perspectives. I am particularly interested in Black, Indigenous, and Global South development approaches that challenge conventional thought/praxis. I am skilled in the use of qualitative, mixed, and participatory action research (PAR) methods that open spaces for multi-paradigmatic knowledge building.
My work advances development theory and practice in two key ways. First, it decolonizes theory to improve understanding of development and its alternatives. By interrogating the power dynamics informing sustainability in action, I unpack structural, relational, and cognitive barriers and identify pathways for transformation. Second, my work informs social research methods through the publication of critical reflections and systematic reviews of practice. By clarifying standards and methods that support connection across difference, I strengthen ethics for interdisciplinary and intercultural engagement.
I currently am working on two book projects that problematize the politics of sustainability through the lens of social justice.
Decolonizing Sustainable Development is a solo-authored comparative historical study of post-authoritarian transitions to sustainability in Latvia and South Africa. This book unpacks the oppressive legacies and insurgent knowledges informing development in societies situated at two frontiers of the modern-colonial world system. More specifically, it examines efforts to develop alternative food systems and sustainability agendas at a time of democratization and free-market triumphalism. Drawing from qualitative and participatory fieldwork with local farming communities, the book offers situated insight into cultural negotiations with marginalization and agency; tradition and modernity; heritage and change. It joins political economy analysis with the Indigenous knowledges of formerly colonized peoples to develop a decolonial theory and practice of sustainable development that challenges business-as-usual.
Democratizing Energy is an edited volume on energy and democracy. As co-editor, I have organized a diverse body of scholars to examine questions pertaining to energy insecurities, risks, and transitions to sustainability. Their rich contributions range from theoretical coverage of energy imaginaries to empirical analyses of alternative energy formations that are occurring in societies around the world.
I also remain involved in a research project on development ethics and research methods. Currently, I have produced three solo-authored articles: (1) a systematic review of peer-reviewed sustainable development studies that employ participatory action research to facilitate transitions to sustainability; (2) an article on development research ethics that delivers a common set of principles for planning, conducting, and evaluating international development research; and (3) a article on transnational feminisms that examines the politics of oppression and liberation in development.
Completed Research Projects
Spring 2022 | |
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Course Number | Course Title |
SOC 101 | Introductory Sociology |
SOC 331 | Environmental Sociology |
JHR 590 | Reading and Conference |
JHR 592 | Research |
JHR 593 | Applied Project |
JHR 599 | Thesis |
Fall 2021 | |
---|---|
Course Number | Course Title |
SOC 426 | Social Inequality |
JHR 501 | PS Social Justice&Human Rights |
JHR 590 | Reading and Conference |
JHR 592 | Research |
JHR 593 | Applied Project |
JHR 598 | Special Topics |
JHR 599 | Thesis |
Spring 2021 | |
---|---|
Course Number | Course Title |
SOC 101 | Introductory Sociology |
JHR 590 | Reading and Conference |
JHR 592 | Research |
JHR 593 | Applied Project |
JHR 599 | Thesis |
Fall 2020 | |
---|---|
Course Number | Course Title |
SOC 426 | Social Inequality |
JHR 501 | PS Social Justice&Human Rights |
JHR 590 | Reading and Conference |
JHR 592 | Research |
JHR 593 | Applied Project |
JHR 598 | Special Topics |
JHR 599 | Thesis |
Spring 2020 | |
---|---|
Course Number | Course Title |
SOC 331 | Environmental Sociology |
POS 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
SBS 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
ASB 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
SOC 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
JHR 590 | Reading and Conference |
JHR 592 | Research |
JHR 593 | Applied Project |
JHR 599 | Thesis |
Fall 2019 | |
---|---|
Course Number | Course Title |
SOC 426 | Social Inequality |
JHR 501 | PS Social Justice&Human Rights |
JHR 590 | Reading and Conference |
JHR 592 | Research |
JHR 593 | Applied Project |
JHR 598 | Special Topics |
JHR 599 | Thesis |
Spring 2019 | |
---|---|
Course Number | Course Title |
SOC 331 | Environmental Sociology |
SOC 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
SBS 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
POS 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
ASB 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
JHR 599 | Thesis |
Fall 2018 | |
---|---|
Course Number | Course Title |
SOC 426 | Social Inequality |
JHR 598 | Special Topics |
JHR 599 | Thesis |
Spring 2018 | |
---|---|
Course Number | Course Title |
SOC 331 | Environmental Sociology |
SOC 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
SBS 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
POS 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
ASB 339 | Grassroots Social Movements |
Fall 2017 | |
---|---|
Course Number | Course Title |
SOC 264 | Gender and Society |
SOC 426 | Social Inequality |
JHR 598 | Special Topics |
Associate: Center for Fair & Alternative Trade (CFAT)
Member: American Sociological Association (ASA)
Member: Action Research Network of the Americas (ARNA).
EDUCAIDS Intern: Education Sector, UNESCO (2006)
Refugee Volunteer Coordinator: Catholic Community Services (2002-2003)
Volunteer Teacher Trainer: United States Peace Corps (1999-2002)