Professor Dr. Jennifer Johnson

Biography

Jennifer Lee Johnson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Community Sustainability at Michigan State University, where she also serves as the Founder and Director of the Toxic Action Lab. Her research focuses on complex human-environmental interactions and the economic, ecological, and socio-political transformations that influence these dynamics. Johnson's work emphasizes community engagement, particularly in the context of environmental contamination and health equity. Since 2007, she has performed long-term fieldwork in Ugandan fisheries and small to mid-sized cities in the Midwest. Her interdisciplinary research endeavors have been supported by various prestigious institutions, including the National Science Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Prior to her time at Michigan State University, Johnson held a faculty position in the Department of Anthropology at Purdue University, and she completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Agrarian Studies at Yale University. She has also been recognized as a Carson Fellow at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich.

Research Interests