My research focuses on processes of change in agriculture and food (agrifood) systems, and in particular, the spatial nature of agrifood system politics: calls for local or regional agrifood systems, in opposition to global agrifood systems. My research explores these spatial claims about the value of local or regional systems, the importance of small-scale farms, and the responsibility we have to trade fairly with others in the global supply chain.
Within this broad area, these are two interests that structure my research:
- The role of constructions of place, nature, environment and rurality in alternative agrifood politics Although the alternative agrifood movement frames its objectives in terms of agricultural sustainability and food justice, specific constructions of place, nature, the environment and rurality play significant roles in forming visions for future agrifood systems. I explore the political expression of these constructions in my doctoral research.
- Agrifood systems and sustainable urban design at the rural-urban interface Food is central to the relationship between urban and rural areas. Many rural areas are undergoing rapid and unsustainable change, often closely linked suburbanization and exurbanization, under the influence of metropolitan areas. I am interested in exploring new ways to embed and value agricultural production in land use planning, both in rural areas, and in the city.
I am currently in the third year of the PhD program in Geography at Clark University. My current and recent projects are introduced below, and are described in more detail in the project pages listed in the sidebar.
Doctoral Research: the Massachusetts Agrifood Movement Study
I am currently in the data collection phase of my doctoral research which works with leaders of alternative agrifood movement organizations in Massachusetts to explore visions for transformative change in our agriculture and food systems. The project is funded by a Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement grant from the National Science Foundation. In addition to the detailed project description linked in the sidebar, you can view the website for the project at http://massagrifoodstudy.com
Residential Landscape Management
During 2010 and 2011 I worked as a Research Assistant for a project exploring the management of residential landscapes in suburban human-environment systems. This research is part of the Human Environment Regional Observatory (HERO) at Clark University, an NSF-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) site. This involved designing a summer research program for participants in the HERO program, and providing acting as a mentor as they worked on the research. This project has one publication forthcoming, and another currently in review.
- Harris, E.M., Martin, D.G., Polsky, C., Denhardt, L. and Nehring, A. (forthcoming) Beyond ‘Lawn People’: The role of emotions in suburban yard management practices. The Professional Geographer.
Decolonizing Diet and Nutrition
I have been pursuing an interest in diet and nutrition advice, and the possibilities for decolonizing the ways in which we tell others what to eat. This has involved participation in a panel discussion at the Critical Geography Conference at Clark University in November 2011, and writing a book chapter for a forthcoming volume in Ashgate’s Critical Food Studies series edited by Allison and Jessica Hayes-Conroy.
- Harris, E.M. (forthcoming). “Traditional knowledge and the Other in alternative dietary guidance,” in: Hayes-Conroy, A. and Hayes-Conroy, J. Doing nutrition differently: Critical approaches to diet/dietary intervention. Ashgate.
Localism in Alternative Agrifood Politics
At the University of Edinburgh, I conducted a research project examining the practice of localism in an emergent alternative agrifood network in Fife, Scotland that was modeled after the 100 Mile Diet. I wrote my Masters dissertation based on this research, and also published two articles exploring the context for alternative agrifood politics. I have also been working on a third article that draws on this research, which I presented at the 2012 AAG meeting in New York, and is currently in review.
- Harris, E.M. 2010. “Eat local? Constructions of place in alternative food politics” Geography Compass, 4:4, 355-369. [pdf]
- Harris, E.M. 2009. “Neoliberal subjectivities or a politics of the possible? Reading for difference in alternative food networks” Area, 41:1, 55-63 [pdf]