Samantha Bennett

MPhil Development Studies
2021

Hi all, I’m Sammi, from Arizona, USA. I grew up in small town north of Phoenix, surrounded by cacti. I spent my undergraduate years in the Bay Area, California, where I was determined to make meaningful connections between the fields of psychology/ human behaviour and environmental studies. I also studied musical theatre to continue my passion for the arts. The ways in which I was able to make meaningful connections between my degrees was often through international research opportunities. I spent a few months in Bolivia to study perceptions of greenspaces in relation to pro-environmental behaviours and I kayaked for weeks along the Baja Peninsula learning about natural history and local species. I spent three months embedded in artisan communities in East Africa, namely Uganda and Rwanda, studying women’s economic empowerment through weaving cooperatives.

After graduating, I spent a year living in South India on a Fulbright, conducting research on women’s agency through solar entrepreneurship in partnership with a social enterprise.

At Oxford, I am excited to build a set of tools in qualitative and participatory methodologies and dissemination strategies that communicate findings beyond academic silos. I hope to further evaluate the human-nature relationship in development processes and better understand women and community-led processes in manifesting social and environmental change. I am excited to continue studying the gender-energy nexus, investigating women’s participation and the role of cooperative groups within energy transitions. I am also interested in agroecological frameworks, and the space that agroecology offers for women as agents of environmental change.

On a personal note, I am always smiling or laughing, often singing. I am not ashamed to break out dancing in public spaces— I adore social dancing, like lindy hop and swing. I am also a lover of being outdoors—hiking, camping, backpacking, running, kayaking, climbing—and hope to get out while at Oxford, exploring the surrounding natural spaces. I have a fondness for cooking vegan and vegetarian meals in community, some of my favorite meals are South Indian dishes. I am an adept yoga practitioner and teacher and would love to share that practice with my peers. I love creative writing and journaling and started a small handmade journal business while under quarantine. I am so excited to be surrounded by such a diverse community of brilliant scholars. Look forward to meeting you all this fall!