I am a Ph.D. student and adjunct lecturer in the Department of Geography at the University of Florida, where I work under Dr. Brian Child . My academic research focuses on community conservation, governance, and capacity building in southern Africa. I am broadly interested in democracy, social capital, and institutions. More specifically, how community governance of natural, wildlife, and other common pool resources leads to and builds upon democratic innovations.
I also serve as the Director of Online Learning Strategy at the University of Virginia . At present, I am also fusing my worlds of work and learning by considering how hybrid and distance learning technologies can facilitate training for practitioners and agencies in community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) and wildlife economy planning.
Prior to attending the University of Florida, I received an MA in political science from Villanova University and a BA in journalism from Ithaca College in “gorges” Ithaca, NY, America’s finest college town.