Research Interests
My research interests primarily focus on human responses to hypervariable conditions. In particular, I'm interested in how societal actions can influence environmental systems, and how people are impacted by unpredictable climatic conditions. I approach my research in an interdisciplinary manner, and as such have a wide array of interests and methodological expertise. My current research primarily focuses on Madagascar, but I have other collaborations in other regions including North America and the Pacific Ocean. In all of my work, I focus on understanding how human behavior (particularly in terms of livelihood strategies) are impacted by different socioenvironmental contexts. I frame my questions theoretically in terms of complex systems and evolutionary frameworks and incorporate geospatial tools to assist in data collection and analysis.
On Madagascar, where I am currently conducting fieldwork, the island's long history of environmental change, and its peoples' diverse livelihood strategies offer unique perspectives on how people lived in the face of climate instability over long periods of time. As such, it offers an ideal case study to investigate human-environmental interactions in hypervariable climatic conditions that can be applied to contemporary contexts.