Facutly Research in Africa
(Faculty memebers listed alphabetically)
Augusto, Geri - Tuabman Center for Public Policy and American Institutions
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1192144814&r=1
Dr. Augusto's current research and practice focus on knowledge dynamics in complex interactive systems marked by power inequalities, including sociocultural relations between contemporary indigenous African therapeutic knowledge and the biosciences, local and global sciences, and historically black and historically white universities. Other interests include learning networks and systems of innovation, organizational learning and transformation, and practitioners' knowledge. She is an Honorary Research Associate at the Centre for African Studies, University of Cape Town, and an Associate Fellow at the Centre for Caribbean Thought, University of the West Indies. From 1973 to 1991, she worked in Southern Africa, in a variety of posts in Tanzania and Angola, including as project economist and technical editor for SADC. She also worked as a Portuguese/English interpreter, for a variety of ministerial, Frontline states, and UN meetings in Southern Africa and Europe. Since 1994, she has collaborated on numerous projects in the South African science and technology, higher education, and indigenous knowledge sectors, including the National Commission on Higher Education; the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology's System-wide Review of the Science, Engineering and Technology Institutions; and the First National Workshop on Indigenous Knowledge Systems. Augusto taught courses fulltime in organization studies in the masters degree and executive programs of the Kennedy School of Government (Harvard), from 1994 to 2002. She has consulted widely to public and nonprofit sector executives on organizational transformation. Geri Augusto holds a B.A. (cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) in economics (Howard), M.P.A. (Kennedy School, Harvard) and Ed.D., Human and Organizational Learning (GWU Graduate School of Education).
Bensmaia, Reda - French Studies, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10108&r=1
Professor Bensmaïa teaches courses on French literature and philosophy, film theory and French and Francophone postcolonial literature. His last book entitled EXPERIMENTAL NATIONS OR THE INVENTION OF THE MAGHREB has been published by Princeton University Press (Spring 2003). He is presently working on two projects : a Monograph on Gilles Deleuze's work and editing a special issue of CINEMAS on the same author; and a book on North African writers and is entitled: Politiques d'écrivain.
Bogues, Anthony - Africana Studies Department
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10149&r=1
My main research interests include intellectual and cultural history, radical political thought and critical theory, as well as Caribbean and African politics. I am working on the following projects; 1. Violence , Death and Sovereignty in the Post Colonial World, 2. A book of Essays on Caribbean Thought, 3. A book examining the conceptions and practices of freedom which emerged in the Haitian Revolution , the Civil Rights Movement in the US and the Struggles for freedom in Southern Africa.
Braun, Lundy - Africana Studies Department
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1100923771&r=1
The overarching goal of my research is to examine the historical production of race in public health and medicine. I am particularly interested in the ways in which understandings of race shaped and were shaped by the development, application, and globalization of the technology of spirometry and why, with few exceptions, the practice of "race correction" has not been contested in pulmonary medicine. A related research project explores the relationship between scientific medicine and the historical production of invisibility of asbestos-related disease in South Africa. Related to this interest is my involvement in a collaborative project with U.S. and South African researchers and activists on asbestos diseases in South Africa.
Brink-Danan, Marcy - Program in Judaic Studies, Department of Anthropology
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1154700331&r=1
A cultural anthropologist, Brink-Danan studies the role of language and symbol in the maintenance of social groups. With regional specialization in Southeastern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, she recently conducted ethnographic research among Jews in Turkey. Brink-Danan's current work looks at how cosmopolitan subjects relate to local politics; as such, she is interested in comparing knowledge production across time and space.
Cammett, Melani - Political Science, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1106969918
Globalization, Business Politics and Development: North Africa in Comparative Perspective (Cambridge University Press, 2007) examines how integration in global manufacturing chains reshapes business politics in developing countries, situating Morocco and Tunisia in broader comparative perspective.
Campbell, James - Africana Studies Department, American Civilization
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10138
James Campbell is currently working on a book-length study of the role of Africa in the life and thought of the pioneering pan-African scholar and activist, W.E.B. Du Bois.
Carpenter, Charles - Medicine, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1100923838&r=1
Charles Carpenter's research over the past decade has been directed toward two main areas, the optimal treatment of HIV infection in North American women and therapeutic strategies that are effective in the developing world.
Cook, Susan - Watson Institue for International Studies
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1127414527&r=1
My present research explores the Royal Bafokeng Nation in South Africa as an example of the persistence of "traditional" forms of patriarchal governance in Africa in the midst of democratisation, modernization, and new discourses of universal and individual "rights." An ethnic group formed in part as a means of consolidating the community's claims to significant mineral wealth (platinum), the Bafokeng are preserving "tradition" by corporatizing their assets and administration. "The Business of Being Bafokeng" not only analyses the legal, economic, and political process of corporatization, but also the symbolic and ideological aspects of this change.
Coppin, Kerry - Visual Arts, Deparment of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1127248388&r=1
Prof. Coppin produces provocative photographic interpretations that elaborate and celebrate aspects of the Black community experience. He is particularly interested in the Black African urban experience, and is convinced (in the words of bell hooks) that "the lives of black people are complex, and are therefore worthy of sophisticated critical analysis and reflection . . ." His visual research is an attempt to use the artistic discipline to provoke and inspire a meaningful dialogue aimed at change, specifically to change the perception of African Community experience.
Fruzzetti, Lina - Anthropology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10167&r=1
Social anthropology, kinship, politics, study of ritual and the construction of gender, development and political studies, race and ethnic relations, Islamic societies and notions of identity, ethnographic film; feminist movement in Africa and Asia, study of ritual and kinship, construction of gender and identity, nationalism and post-colonial identity (India and Africa).
George, Olakunle - English, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10012
Book-length study of (i) writings by black and so-called "native" Christian missionaries in West Africa in the 19th century; and (ii) autobiographies, novels, and other writings by African intellectuals, nationalist figures, and creative writers from the middle of the 20th century.
Heath, Shirley Brice - Education, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10170&r=1
Research is focused on linguistic and cognitive learning that takes place through means such as apprenticeship, mentoring, organizational management, and financial planning that depend on observing, listening, and modeling that goes beyond verbal instruction. Current research involves innovative means of enabling young artists who want to be community organizational leaders to have opportunities to advance their own work as artists while also studying nonprofit management and finance. This work is international and includes young people as members of the research team.
Heller, Patrick - Sociology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1106970263&r=1
Patrick Heller studies development, political sociology, and comparative political economy. He is the author of The Labor of Development (Cornell University Press, 1999) which examines the role of subordinate classes in the transformation to capitalism in the Indian state of Kerala. He has written on a range of topics on India, including democratic consolidation, the politics of economic transformation, social capital and social movements. Most recently, he has conducted fieldwork in South Africa, exploring processes of democratization through case studies of the civics movement and local government re-structuring. He is currently engaged in a long-term project exploring the dynamics of democratic deepening in India, Brazil and South Africa.
Henry, Paget - Africana Studies Department
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1106970262&r=1
Areas of Interest: Development, Political Sociology, Critical Theory, Caribbean Studies. My areas of research are economic and political problems of the Caribbean. I also work on a number of specific Caribbean thinkers and on a number of critical theorists. Currently, I am doing some research on the role of culture and the process of development in both the Caribbean and Africa. I teach courses on development, the Caribbean, political sociology and on Colonial Cultures. My most recent publication is C. L. R. James' Caribbean.
Hollos, Marida - Anthropology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10171&r=1
Professor Hollos studies the population of developing countries, especially fertility, infertility, and the status of women. She is especially interested in how motherhood and the concept of children are configured in different regions.
Jacobs, Nancy J. - History, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10089&r=1
I am currently working on a book project titled Birders of a Feather: Stories of People, Birds, and Other People in Africa. The book probes the politics of knowing about and interacting with birds while exploring "traditional" African knowledge, interactions between colonial ornithologists and African assistants, the post-independence diversification of the field, historic environmental changes, and how relations of power and affection across species and cultures converge in recent conservation and ecotourism initiatives.
Jones, Rhett - Africana Studies Department
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10091&r=1
Rhett S. Jones published “Mulattos, Freejacks, Cape Verdeans, Black Seminoles and Others” in an anthology edited by James L. Conyers, and “One Africanity or Many? Researching the Deep Structural Location of Blackness” in The International Journal of Africana Studies. Now in press are “Civilization and Its Discontents: Black Life in the Eighteenth Century Cities of British North America” in an anthology on blacks in cities; “From Unity to Complexity: Books on Northeastern Black History “ in an Occasional Paper to be published by the Trotter Institute; “Methodology and Meaning: The Sociology of Malcolm X” in an anthology on Malcolm X; “Sex and Sensibility: Black Women in the Eighteenth Century Urban Americas” in an anthology on African American women in cities; and “Sub-Africanity in Africa and the Americas” in the Western Journal of Black Studies. In Spring 2003 Jones taught a new undergraduate seminar, “Indian/Black Individuals and Communities in the Americas,” made possible with support provided by the Wayland Collegium, and modeled on a course he first taught with the late William McLoughlin. In Summer 2003 Jones was a participant in the “Psychoanalysis and Race” seminar held at NYU, sponsored by the Faculty Research Network, and he continues as a Contributing Editor to Black Masks and as Contributing Writer to the Pepper Bird Magazine.
Kiene, Susan - Medicine, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1192815574
The Salawo Uganda--Brown Collaboration brings together academic researchers, public health care providers, and students to conduct research, improve health care services, and create unique learning opportunities around HIV/AIDS intervention and prevention in rural Uganda.
Kurtis, Jonathan - Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1100924512&r=1
Dr. Jonathan Kurtis applies the techniques of molecular biology, immunology and population biology to identify vaccine candidates for both malaria and schistosomiasis in east Africa and the Philippines. By analyzing the relationship between specific immune responses and naturally acquired resistance in endemic populations, Dr. Kurtis identifies and characterizes new vaccine candidates. His current interests include the modulation of protective immune responses by nutritional and developmental factors in the human host and the identification of vaccine candidates for pediatric falciparum malaria.
Kwara, Awewura - Medicine, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1100925704&r=1
Dr Kwara current research focus is the development of molecular and clinical models to identify and predict drug interactions between antiretroviral and antituberculous agents, for which he has received a Mentored Patient-Oriented Reseacrh Career Developmental Award (K23) grant through NIAID. He has projects in Ghana that are designed to examine the role of concurrent antiretroviral therapy in the treatment of HIV during TB treatment.
Leis, Philip - Anthropology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10175&r=1
Professor Leis studies sociocultural anthropology, social and political organization, interethnic relations, enculturation and cultural change. Regionally, his work focuses on Africa. Ongoing project topics include: West and Southern African ethnology, pluralism; associations life cycle, economic development; cross-cultural study of adolescence.
Lindstrom, David - Sociology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1106970264&r=1
My research examines the determinants and consequences of migration in economically developing societies, the transition into adulthood, and the changing dynamics of reproductive health and behavior. In Mexico and Guatemala I study the interrelationship between migration and stages of the family life cycle, and the role of migration in the diffusion of urban reproductive norms and behavior back to rural places of origin. In Ethiopia I examine the social and demographic determinants of fertility, and the influence of the social and cultural context on early life course transitions.
Luke, Nancy - Sociology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1154100568
This project aims to improve methods of data collection for sexual behavior in Kenya. Using a life course approach, we construct retrospective relationship histories for 600 young females and males and interview these respondents' marital and nonmarital sexual partners to create a unique matched partner sample.
Lurie, Mark - Community Health, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1100925759
The effect of AIDS treatment on prevention of secondary HIV transmission is largely unknown. Using primary data collected in Durban, Acornhoek and Soweto, South Africa, this project uses mathematical modelling to estimate the impact of treatment on secondary HIV transmission.
McGarvey, Stephen - Community Health, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1100924715&r=1
Dr. McGarvey is concerned with issues of human population biology and international health, specifically modernization-related induced socio-economic and behavioral changes, tropical parasitology and child nutritional status and health, and environmental issues. His research involves developing-world countries such as Samoa, the Philippines, and Ghana.
Operario, Don - Community Health, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1220552707&r=1
My research bridges behavioral sciences and public health, with a specific focus on social determinants and social sequelae of HIV/AIDS. I work with vulnerable populations for health disparities -including ethnic minorities, sexual minorities, and other disadvantaged groups in the United States and in developing world settings. I am fundamentally interested in conducting work that has direct public health and policy relevance, aimed especially toward improving outcomes in underprivileged communities. My current work is based in urban centers in the United States as well as international settings including China, South Africa, and ex-Soviet states in Eastern Europe and Central Asia
Putterman, Louis - Economics, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1106970006&r=1
Louis Putterman conducts research on economic behavior, economic development, organizations, incentives, and economic systems. His recent research topics include: effects of early history on recent levels and rates of growth; industrial enterprise behavior and employment in China; income distribution; and rural economic development. In recent years, he has been conducting experiments to study trust, reciprocity, cooperation, and preferences regarding the distribution of income.
Russell, James - Geological Sciences, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1145466386&r=1
I seek to understand the patterns and causes of natural climate variability using paleoclimate records. I am particularly interested in the climate history of the tropics, including intertropical Africa and the El Niño Southern Oscillation system. My work involves the generation of high-resolution paleoclimate reconstructions using lake sediments, and synthesizing those records into regionally-coherent datasets to to test against climate models.
Sala, Osvaldo - Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Deparment of Environmental Change Initiative
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1100925750&r=1
I have explored several topics throughout my career from water controls on carbon and nitrogen dynamics in arid and semi-arid ecosystems to the consequences of changes in biodiversity on the functioning of ecosystems, including the development of biodiversity scenarios for the next 50 years. I am particularly interested in working with scenarios as a way of simplifying, understanding, and communicating the complex relationships that emerge from the study of social-ecological systems.
Short, Susan - Sociology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1106969905&r=1
Susan E. Short is a sociologist and demographer. Her research focuses on gender, fertility and reproductive health, child development, work-family issues, and methods of social research. She addresses these topics in the U.S., China, and Africa.
Simmons, William - Anthropology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10178&r=1
William Simmons studies social/cultural anthropology, religion, myth, and ritual – focusing on West Africa and Native America. He is also interested in American cultural pluralism and the transformations of contemporary American research universities.
Smith, Daniel - Anthropology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10179&r=1
Professor Smith conducts research in medical anthropology, anthropological demography, and political anthropology in sub-Saharan Africa, with a specific focus on Nigeria. His research in medical and demographic anthropology includes work on HIV/AIDS, reproductive health and behavior, adolescent sexuality, marriage, kinship, and rural-urban migration. His work on political culture in Nigeria includes studies of patron-clientism, Pentecostal Christianity, vigilantism, and corruption.
Townsend, Nicholas - Anthropology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=10181&r=1
Professor Townsend studies social reproduction; families and social structure; men's lives in political-economic context; spatially dispersed social groups; the United States and Southern Africa.
White, Michael - Sociology, Department of
http://research.brown.edu/research/profile.php?id=1106969904&r=1
I arrived at Brown University in 1989. Most of my research investigates issues that stand at the intersection of sociology and public policy. I wear the hat of a demographer, so I naturally lean toward population studies and the use of censuses and surveys. I am presently involved in a wide range of research projects in a variety of geographic settings. Current research on the United States includes studies of immigrant adaptation in schooling, family and the labor force. I am also working on new methods for analyzing residential segregation that can reflect the increasing ethnic diversity of contemporary America's urban areas. In developing societies, I study the determinants of migration, urbanization, and their demographic and environmental consequences. In China and Vietnam, I examine the link between migration patterns and economic restructuring. Currently, I am very actively involved in field research in Ghana, where I coordinate an interdisciplinary project that brings demographers and biologists together to look at demographic change, health issues, and water quality along the coast. For the last several years I have taught Sociology 13 "American Heritage: Democracy, Inequality, and Public Policy." I also teach graduate courses in migration, sociological research methods, and other subjects. A list of publications and working papers appear elsewhere on this website. I have been a staff member of the Urban Institute and a fellow of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, both in Washington D.C.