The Critical Environmental Geopolitics Research Group (CEGRG) is meant to be a shared place for graduate students interested in the intersection between critical social science approaches and perspectives and the study of environmental conflict and violence. Our lab comprises undergraduate, Master’s, and Ph.D. students working around the world.
We discuss and conduct research related to critical political ecology and environmental geopolitics that pays serious attention to both the materiality of nature and the agency of people, groups, and institutions that are enrolled in ecological practices.
The lab group meets bi-weekly to discuss term papers, thesis ideas, proposal and grant writing, and other issues that are meant to benefit all students.
Faculty
Current Postdocs
2025: Melvin Obadha (CGHE/SEAS Postdoc)
2025: Marlotte De Jong (Currently NCID/SEAS Postdoc)
Former Postdocs Supervised
2024 Dr. Sarah Caroll (NSF CAREER Project)
2022 Dr. Wenjing Xu (NSF CAREER Project)
2020 Dr. John Mullen (Sustainability and Development)
2020 Dr. Philile Mbatha (University of Michigan Africa Presidential Scholars)
Current Students
Ph.D. Candidates
Former PhD Students
PhD 2025: Ember McCoy (Current Postdoc at Social Science Research Institute at Penn State University )
PhD 2025: Marlotte De Jong (currently postdoc at the School for Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan)
Current Ph.D. Committee Advising
2022 Shahram Abbas
2021 K. Malulani Castro
2018 Kristen Connor (Anthropology & History)
Former Ph.D. Committee Advising
2017 Katherine Browne (Now at Stockholm Environment Institute)
2015 Hayden Hedman (Now at CDC)
2013 Maria Carolina Simao (Now at Princeton University
2012 Joshua Cousins (Now at SUNY-ESF)
2011 Baruani Mshale (Now at CIFOR)
Current Masters of Science (Thesis)
2024: Andrew Clapper
Former Masters of Science (Thesis)
2023: Meghna Patnaik
2023: Jessica Silber-Byrne
2022 Evan Klasky: Milking Welfare: The Inclusive Thanatopolitics of the Digital Dairy Farm
2021 Roshan Krishnan: “The gasoline of the future:” points of continuity, energy materiality, and corporate marketing of electric vehicles among automakers and utilities
2017 Marlotte De Jong: Constructing the Poacher: Narratives of Blame in Ivory Poaching
2017 Saachi Kuwayama: Protesting on Behalf: Constructing Legitimacy in Water Movements
2015 Claire Poelking: Gender and Pastoralism in an age of shifting political economies of labor
2015 Amanda Kaminsky: China in Africa and the New Safari
2012 Cara Steger: Citizen Science and Natural Resource Monitoring in African Protected Areas
2012 Erin O’Brien (committee member; Johannes Foufopoulos, Advisor): Effects of grazing treatments on vegetative regrowth in East African savanna grasslands
2011 David O’Connor (committee member; Johannes Foufopoulos, Advisor): Grazing ecologies of giraffes and camels in Northern Kenya: Possibilities for Competition?
2011 Wan-Chih Cheng (committee member; Johannes Foufopoulos, Advisor): Effects of small ruminant grazing on ecosystem services in Greece
> 30 Masters of Science (Non-Thesis)
Critical Environmental Geopolitics Research Group 
You must be logged in to post a comment.