Teaching

Teaching Approach

I am passionate about teaching. I believe that teaching offers the best opportunity for critically engaging with students and sharing my excitement for issues in environment and development as well as the regions of eastern and southern Africa, where I conduct the bulk of my research.

My teaching philosophy is rooted in the idea that deep learning about our role as global citizens can only take place when students are given the opportunity to unravel the relationships connecting privilege and poverty.

My approach to teaching centres on four key commitments:

Passion

My first commitment is to convey my passion for African agriculture.  I strive to provide students with an authentic connection between what they’re learning in the classroom and what transpires outside of it, so that the process of learning transforms into a process of living.

Innovation

Successful teaching requires taking risks by embracing new approaches - not just innovation for innovation’s sake, but systematic experimentation with novel techniques and technologies to enrich and deepen student learning. I believe that successful teaching involves taking risks by integrating new technologies and teaching techniques.

Creative Assessment

I try to craft creative assignments that are transparent, encouraging, and constructive. I aim for assignments that are tied deliberately and strategically to the course learning outcomes while remaining varied and engaging to students.

Mentorship

I believe one of my roles is to nurture and challenge all students to help them hone the skills they will need to succeed after completing their degrees. I strive to empower students to cultivate a mindset of global citizenship that exposes how the privileges we enjoy on a daily basis are built upon the exploitation of people and the planet, and how we might redress these injustices to create a world that is more equitable and sustainable.

I have taught a range of courses on issues of environment and development, including courses on global environmental politics, environmental geography, community development, political ecology, environmental security and development in practice.

In the past, I have taught

I have taught a range of courses on issues of environment and development, including courses on global environmental politics, environmental geography, community development, political ecology, environmental security and development in practice.

In the past, I have taught:

  • INTD/CANA 1103 Halifax and the World
  • INTD 2001 Introduction to International Development
  • SUST 2001 Environment, Sustainability, and Governance
  • INTD 3002 Development in Practice
  • INTD 3014 Community Development
  • INTD 3103 Participatory Development
  • INTD 3104 Community Development in Comparative Perspective
  • INTD 3114 Environment and Development
  • INTD 4012 Honours Thesis Course
  • INTD 4013 Environmental Security and Conflict
  • INTD 5002 Grad Seminar Research and Design

In 2022/23 I will be teaching the following:

Fall semester (2022)

  • INTD 2001: Global Justice and Development
  • INTD 3114: Agricultural Development

Winter semester (2022)

  • INTD/CANA 1103 Halifax and the World