Chesney McOmber
Political Scientist, Gender Specialist, Environmental Activist, Global Learner
Thanks for visiting! Explore my site to learn more about me, my background and my approach to learning.
If you have questions or would like to discuss an opportunity to work together, please be in touch!
Bio
I am a political scientist, specializing in Comparative Politics and International Relations. I study human dimensions of climate change and, in particular, I am interested in the processes and mechanisms that promote or enable social transformation in order to build a climate resilient future. My research explores environmental politics amongst marginalized populations (e.g., women, ethnic minorities, indigenous). My fieldwork experience spans globally, from the United States to South Africa, Jordan, Morocco, Kenya, and Nepal. While some of my more recent research has included mixed methods approaches, my methodological expertise lies in gender analysis, participatory visual methodology, and ethnographic methodology to explore the concept of empowerment amidst environmental change.
I'm always looking for opportunities to speak with more people working on similar questions!
Dissertation and Current Works
The Feminization of Rural Space: Exploring Gender, Power, and Demographic Change in Africa
​
My academic background reflects over a decade of international research experience and interdisciplinary collaboration on mitigating climate vulnerabilities amongst marginalized populations in the Global South. These various projects have focused largely on the nexus of gender, food security, and climate change in Kenya, Morocco, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Jordan, and Nepal.
My research explores two central and interrelated questions: 1) In what ways do historically marginalized populations respond to and express power in moments of political, social, and economic disruption caused by environmental crises? and, 2) What social processes and mechanisms drive (and inhibit) the types of social transformation necessary to build equitable (climate) resilient systems?
In order to understand each of these questions, I have developed two primary streams of research. The first focuses on social equity, empowerment, and political transformation processes in the context of environmental stressors and climate change. The second explores knowledge creation, information sharing, and artistic participatory research methodologies as they relate to social transformation and resilience building.
​
Empowerment, Resilience, and Social Transformation
How do societies transform under stress? What processes must be in place to bring about the transformation necessary to build climate resilient political, economic, and social systems? My dissertation research on women's empowerment in Kenya and Morocco began to explore this question. However, my current postdoctoral work at the University of Connecticut delves more deeply into the processes and mechanisms that enable (and inhibit) transformative governance within climate resilient policymaking. Publications on this latest research is forthcoming.
​
Relevant Publications:
​
McOmber, C; McNamara, K; Ryley, T. D.; McKune, S. L. 2021. "Investigating the Conceptual Plurality of Empowerment through Community Concept Drawing: Case Studies from Senegal, Kenya, and Nepal" Sustainability 13(6): 3166. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13063166
​
​
Environmental Politics
Climate Change is the pressing social, economic, political, and ecological challenge of our time. We will all be forced to respond to environmental changes and severe climate events as they become more prevalent; those with the resources to prepare and respond for these environmental changes will be better equipped. Populations from historically marginalized groups (e.g., the poor, the disabled, youth, elderly, ethnic and racial minorities, LGBTQ, women) often lack equitable access to those resources. It is imperative that institutions are able to help support those most vulnerable to climate change effects. I have worked on issues of gender and climate adaptation and resilience within international development for the last decade and continues to be the central focus of my research agenda. More recently, my postdoctoral research explores environmental policy and the roles of state institutions around wastewater management in the United States.
Relevant Publications:
​
McOmber, C.; Audia, C.; and Crowley, F. 2019. “Building resilience by challenging social norms: integrating a transformative approach within the BRACED consortia” Disasters 43(S3): S271-S294 https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.12341
​
McKune, S; Poulsen, L.; Russo, S.; Devereux, T.; Faas, S.; McOmber, S.; and Ryley, T. D.. 2018. "Reaching the end goal: Do interventions to improve climate information services lead to greater food security?" Climate Risk Management 22: 22-41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crm.2018.08.002
​
McOmber, C.; Zhuang, Y; Raudales, R; Vadas, T.; and Kirchhoff, C.. 2021.“What is recycled water, anyway? Investigating greenhouse grower definitions, perceptions, and willingness to use recycled water”. Rural Agriculture and Food Security. 1-10 https://doi.org/10.1017/S1742170521000090
​
Co-Production of Knowledge and Artistic Methods for Social Science Inquiry
There is an emerging movement within development studies- and, to some extent, the applied social sciences- to incorporate multi-directional and participatory learning methods within our research. Research participants are not merely data points to be collected, but instead integral actors and contributors in the process of knowledge creation. In response to this ontological shift in the social sciences, I have developed Community Concept Drawing (CCD), a participatory visual methodology using illustrated narratives to understand local interpretations of critical social science concepts. I am interested in developing methods that facilitate this type of learning- where research becomes a multi-directional conversation with feedback loops and spaces for collective sharing that recognizes and values many knowledges.
​
Relevant Publications:
​
McOmber, C; McNamara, K.; and McKune, S. L. 2022. “Community Concept Drawing: A participatory visual method for incorporating local knowledge into conceptualization” Field Methods 34(2) https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822X211014736
McOmber, C.; Zhuang, Y.; Raudales, R.; Vadas, T.; and Kirchhoff, C. 2021.“What is recycled water, anyway? Investigating greenhouse grower definitions, perceptions, and willingness to use recycled water”. Rural Agriculture and Food Security. 1-10 https://doi.org/10.1017/S1742170521000090
​
McOmber, C and McNamara, K. 2022. “Decolonising Empowerment in Africa: Illustration as a tool” (in) Non-western Global Theories of International Relations. (ed) Samantha Cooke. Palgrave. 159-190 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-84938-2_7
Environmental Politics in the Global South
University of Florida
Fall 2016
This course explored the environmental politics as they effect global south countries. The course approached the content through an international political economy lens. Topics of discussion include Politics of Oil in Nigeria, Deforestation in Brazil, and Water politics in India.
International Environmental Relations
University of Florida
Fall 2017
This course explores the topic of environmental politics with a specific focus on international organizations. We debate the efficacy of soft power and international norms while exploring topics of endangered species protection, energy policy, and international agreements such as the Paris Climate Accord.
Writing in the Social Sciences
University of Florida
Fall 2018; Spring 2019
This is an upper level writing course which provides an introduction to field methods. Students must then utilize those field methods to conduct a semester long social science research project and produce a 15 paged paper on their findings.
Writing for Sustainability
University of Florida
Spring 2019
This course is intended for architecture majors focusing on sustainability in the built environment. Students produce a proposal for a sustainable design (Tiny House Community/Elementary School). Throughout the course, students build writing skills including research, conducting a literature review, and storytelling with particular attention to audience.
Teaching Philosophy
My teaching philosophy is rooted in action-oriented learning, with a focus on social justice. We learn through play, engagement, and creatively working through problems. As a teacher, I see my task as three-fold: first, I present social problems relevant to the themes of the class; second, I provide critical literature and instruction on a range of theoretical and methodological tools that can be used to solve the problem at hand; third, I facilitate opportunities for students to work together to construct solutions to these social problems- be it through in-class simulations or service learning projects. In each of these stages of learning, I am mindful to engage students with topics of diversity and social equity, which I do through the course content, the class activities, and by facilitating and modeling a classroom culture that celebrates our diverse experiences, knowledges, and ideas.
Education
Smith College
A.B. Government; African Studies
September 2004- May 2008
University of Florida
M.A. Political Science
August 2010- May 2014
University of Florida
Ph.D. Political Science
August 2010- August 2018
