Assistant Professor of Latin American Environmental History, University of Iowa I am a historian of modern Latin America, specializing in the 20th-century environmental history of Mexico. I received my Ph.D. in History from the University of California, Davis in 2021. My research interests focus on the many forms in which the transnational movement of people, food commodities, and agricultural technologies change rural landscapes in Latin America. Currently, I am working on my first book project, “Guacamole Ecosystems: Agriculture, Migration, and Deforestation in Twentieth-Century Mexico,” that challenges the assumption that bureaucrats, scientists, and large-scale farmers were the primary actors in a long path of transformations of the Mexican countryside in the twentieth century. Through the case study of avocado cultivation in Michoacán, where eighty percent of the avocados consumed in the U.S. are grown every year, I analyze how Indigenous and mestizo peasants and returned migrant workers transformed their local landscape and economy by appropriating and adapting outside agricultural innovations, the varied effects of their participation in transforming ecosystems and power relationships, and their role as investors and negotiators in the global agribusiness complex. My research has been supported by several grants and fellowships, including the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), the American Historical Association (AHA), the Latin American Studies Association (LASA), and the Consortium for History of Science, Technology, and Medicine.
Lecturer in Criminology, University of Tasmania Victoria is a Lecturer in Criminology at UTAS who focuses on historical criminology (especially women's crime and violence), has a more contemporary research focus on sexual assault perpetration and prevention against women, men and children, and intersections between popular culture and sexual violence. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2041-1080
Research Fellow in Applied Machine Learning, The University of Melbourne Dr Vlada Rozova is a data scientist and a machine learning practitioner passionate about developing automated systems to improve patient care. She is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow with the Centre for Digital Transformation of Health at the University of Melbourne. Vlada works with stakeholders of diverse backgrounds to build solutions that address user needs. She enjoys the interdisciplinary challenge and loves seeing the development and implementation of tools from start to end.
Investigadora predoctoral - Área de Optometría, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela Investigadora predoctoral del Área de Optometría de la Facultad de Óptica y Optometría de la Universidad de Santiago de Compostela desde el año 2021. Su investigación actual está centrada en el control de la miopía en niños.
Assistant Professor of Leadership Studies, University of Richmond Dr. Vladimir Chlouba, assistant professor of leadership studies, researches the conditions that underpin political order in weak states. In particular, he is an expert in traditional leadership with a regional focus in sub-Saharan Africa. He also investigates the long-term ramifications of colonialism and the enduring effects of early statehood on the African continent. Having conducted extensive field research in several African countries, including Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, and Malawi, he is keen to involve his students in hands-on research experiences in the developing world. Dr. Chlouba received his doctorate in political science at The Ohio State University. Prior to joining the Jepson School in 2023, he was a visiting fellow at the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at the University of Notre Dame. At the Kellogg Institute, he explored how norms habituated by inhabitants of precolonial African states continue to shape ordinary people's attitudes toward politics today. Dr. Chlouba’s work has been published in leading academic journals, including Comparative Political Studies, Journal of Historical Political Economy, and others. Outside of academic work, he has co-authored several policy-oriented reports published by the World Bank. To learn more about Vladimir Chlouba’s research and teaching, visit his personal website.
Lecturer, Faculty of Law, The Open University of Tanzania Victoria Melkisedeck Lihiru holds a doctorate and master’s degree in law in human rights, constitutional law, and regional integration.
