Audrey Smith

My research examines the complex relationships between people and the environment through the perspectives of social-ecological systems and political ecology. I study how land-use change, development policy, and community-based natural resource management shape both livelihoods and ecosystems. Methodologically, I combine remote sensing, GIS, and machine learning with qualitative and policy analysis to identify patterns and drivers of change, as well as the political-economic processes behind them. I am particularly interested in global food systems and food security from a coupled human–natural systems perspective, with a broader focus on human–environment interactions in the context of global environmental change. Much of my work centers on tropical conservation and development in the Global South, where historical legacies, contemporary governance, and investment dynamics create both acute vulnerabilities and possibilities for more just and sustainable futures