Collaboration, cooperation, and democracy
How people work together to improve the environment, food, and agriculture is a fundamental concern of mine. One way I study this is by examining processes of collaboration, cooperation, and democracy in agri-environmental arrangements. The roots of this research extend back to my time contributing to urban agriculture projects in Denver, Colorado. While working as a researcher, non-profit professional, and volunteer in these networks, I became especially concerned with the ways in which power worked to reproduce inequality in urban agriculture. As part of a Center for Collaborative Conservation research fellowship, and under the mentorship of Dr. Michael Carolan, I studied barriers and opportunities to more equitable urban agriculture collaborations. This resulted in a number of papers, including a published manuscript and a book chapter written with Dr. David McIvor discussing the deeply democratic potential of urban agriculture.
Studying urban agriculture collaborations set the foundation for inquiry into broader regional patterns that connect urban and rural networks. Through a USDA Hatch Grant, Dr. Michael Carolan and I began researching food system resilience along the front range of Colorado. After initial fieldwork, we found there to be a budding interest in cooperatives in the region, many of which were supported by Rocky Mountain Farmers Union. I began following a number of co-ops with the intention of writing my dissertation on the topic. Through extensive fieldwork, I examined the network outcomes of varying cooperative frames, interactions, and organizational configurations in food and agriculture co-ops, especially concerning socio-cultural diversity and equity. Three papers and one book chapter have been written as part of this effort.
I have also worked with Dr. Hugh Campbell, Dr. Katharine Legun, and the New Zealand Sustainability Dashboard team on a number of research projects examining agri-environmental governance in New Zealand. Collaboration, cooperation, and democracy are key concerns within this research. For example, we are studying processes of collaboration and trust in water quality governance networks in the Canterbury region of New Zealand. Case comparisons between US and New Zealand cooperatives are also planned.
Publications related to this research