Category: Public
-
Public talk @ UC Berkeley March 10
I’m very excited to be giving a talk at UC Berkeley next month on genetically modified crops, sustainability, and qualitative research methods.
-
Recipient of the 2019 Boahen-Wilks Prize
Happy to share that my article, “We Are Not Starving: Challenging Genetically Modified Seeds and Development in Ghana” received the 2019 Boahen-Wilks Prize for Outstanding Scholarly Article in Ghana Studies.
-
The Fight for the Future of Food
On October 23, 2019, the University of San Francisco hosted five leading African food sovereignty activists for a night of discussion, food, and networking. We were fortunate to hear from Victoria Adongo (Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana), Mariam Bassey-Orovwuje (Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa), Dr. Million Belay (Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa), Mariam…
-
2018 in Review
It’s December, which means I’ve hit the year anniversary of my defense (wow!) and 2019 is near. I’ve been reflecting on work done the past year – not because productivity is the goal – but because I, like many others, constantly fall into the trap of feeling underproductive and therefore overlooking actual accomplishments. So, I…
-
A Potato Named Kofi
Earlier this week, Ghanaian scientists announced they plan to name a new sweet potato variety after fellow countryman Kofi Annan, the former UN Secretary General who died on August 18 of this year. The primary investigator overseeing the sweet potato project, Dr. Ernest Baafi, told reporters the naming was in tribute of Annan’s work with the…
-
An update on GM crops in Ghana
It’s been two years since Ghana’s High Court overturned a temporary injunction on the commercialization of genetically modified (GM) rice and cowpea. Since then, research on both have continued (though there was no indication that it stopped during the injunction), and GM cowpea is slated to hit the market in 2018.
-
Making “the case for colonialism” in Ghanaian social studies textbooks
By using “The Case for Colonialism” as a point of departure to discuss Ghanaian school curriculum, my intention is not to overlook the very real problematics of the article, nor to suggest that Gilley’s argument is exceptional (it is not). Rather, I believe the quick lining up of for/against overlooks the need to interrogate the very real ways…
-
On Farmers as “Very Difficult People”
The Ghanaian Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture resigned today after calling northern Ghanaian farmers “liars,” “very difficult people,” and accusing them of extortion. Many were understandably, and rightfully, upset at the Deputy Minister’s comments, but I argue that his comments, though vile, are not exceptional. During fieldwork, I regularly encountered super negative discourse about…
-
Trotro Advice for Surviving Fieldwork
Let these wise taxis and trotros guide you through fieldwork’s unexpected challenges.
-
Temporary Injunction on GM Rice and Cowpea Overturned in Ghana
A ruling in Ghana’s High Court Thursday morning overturned a temporary injunction on the commercialization of genetically modified (GM) rice and cowpea.
-
Africa, Rising and Militarized
Discourse, both textual and visual, is a key component for maintaining and replicating everyday ideologies, processes, and structures of power. Lately I’ve been coming across images accompanying articles about Africa in major U.S. publications (e.g. the Economist and New York Times) that have caused my jaw to drop a bit. Here are a few:
Joeva Sean Rock 