Generate a tailored SOP for Dr. Rosemary Claire Collard. Improve your application with a focused, well-structured draft.
I’m an economic geographer and political ecologist studying the political economy of environmental change. My research focuses on identifying political economic drivers of extinction and the loss of wild animal abundance. I explore proximate causes and trends of land-use change, habitat loss, and overexploitation. Through my work, I seek to develop deeper explanations by studying the colonial capitalist structures involved in wild animal over-exploitation and habitat loss, including property regulation, markets, commodity chains, financial flows, and decision-making processes such as environmental assessments. I investigate the power dynamics generated by these structures and how they enable destructive land use change that benefits broader capitalist interests. My ongoing research projects include examining extractive development on Indigenous land, the global live wildlife trade, and conflict arising from predator interactions. I aim to integrate primary field research with critical theory, particularly feminist postcolonial political economy, environmental justice, and animal studies. I hold a PhD (2014) and MA (2009) in geography from the University of British Columbia, as well as a BA Honours in geography and environmental studies from the University of Victoria (2007).
Department of Philosophy