I am a cultural anthropologist at North Carolina State University.

For the past thirty years, I have focused on the region of Calakmul in southern Mexico where I look at rain forest conservation, international migration, and economic policies that affect small-scale farmers. Now available from Oxford University Press, my book Marriage after Migration: An Ethnography of Money, Romance and Gender in Globalizing Mexico shares the stories of five women whose husbands and sons travel to the United States to work. The book shows how women in smallholding families, especially Indigenous women help build globalization without ever stepping foot outside Mexico.

At North Carolina State University, I teach in the Anthropology and International Studies programs and have been active with graduate education, especially through the Genetic Engineering and Society Center. After completing a term as president of the Society for Economic Anthropology, I joined the executive board of the American Anthropological Association as a representative of the group’s medium-sized sections. Since 2024, I have supported NC State’s department of Integrative Humanities and Social Sciences in a few administrative capacities, including serving as Director of Undergraduate Programs.

Banner photo credit: Luis Melodelgado

CV

My research focuses on the livelihoods of smallholders and increasingly emphasizes the gendered quality of their global engagements.  

Research & Data

My research falls within a few areas: political ecology, agrarian studies, international development, labor migration, and globalization.

Teaching & Mentoring

I use ideas of cultural difference to expand students' imaginations and sharpen critical thinking.  My classes emphasize reading and writing.

Blog