Karl S. Zimmerer

Karl S. Zimmerer is Professor of Environment and Society Geography in the Ecology and Rural Sociology programs at Pennsylvania State University, where he also directs the GeoSyntheSES lab. His research, teaching, and broader activities center on global food geographies. Zimmerer combines social and political ecology to focus on the human-environment geography of biodiversity in land use and food systems (agrobiodiversity). His work advances theoretical and analytical models, selectively using regional case studies and community participation to strengthen sustainability and social justice. He is the recipient of Guggenheim and Rockefeller fellow recognition, Penn State’s Medal for Outstanding Research in the Social Sciences, and awards from the American Geographical Society and sub-groups on Latin America, Biogeography, and Cultural and Political Ecology of the American Association of Geographers. He holds a Ph.D. from University of California, Berkeley.