Professional people-watching requires extensive note-taking. Ethnographers use their fieldnotes to keep track of everything as they conduct their research. They are writers first and foremost. Learning to write useful fieldnotes, to keep good research notes, is an essential skill for environmental and ecological anthropologists. It is evident from my review of the initial Field Notes … Continue reading Fieldnotes Are Research Notes
Category: Research
Happy Academic New Year!
Only 5 more days until the fall term starts at University of Maryland. That means my lazy summer days writing and researching in t-shirts and flip flops while sipping green tea are coming to an end. It is bittersweet. I am super excited to get back into the classroom. Like jittery and happy because of … Continue reading Happy Academic New Year!
What I learned ‘listening’ to Vulture Tweets
Despite my husband's concern that I have been wasting time on Twitter recently, I really have been doing research. Anthropologists collect data in a lot of strange places. As part of a research team focused on the African vulture decline I have interviewed farmers, pastoralists, government workers, teachers, business people, and other conservation-oriented folks in … Continue reading What I learned ‘listening’ to Vulture Tweets
Animals as Medicine Pt. 1
I've been working on a project for over a year now investigating the belief use of vultures and vulture parts in various sub-Saharan African cultures. One area of this belief use is for medicine - curing physical and mental illnesses. When I talk about my work, I often get an initial look of disbelief and … Continue reading Animals as Medicine Pt. 1
The Green Participant Observer 