I am a PhD candidate at the Natural Resource Department at the Faculty for Earth Observation and Geo-Information Sciences at the University of Twente. I am a plant scientist by training and my research focuses on the use of simulation models (ABMs in particular) for ex-ante assessment of governance measures aimed at improving food security. My geographic focus is the Majority World, Ethiopia in particular, where I am currently trying to assess the impact of a large-scale food security programme called the Productive Safety Nets Programme (PSNP). In this setting, as in all other settings, I am interested in how we can govern our food systems effectively and sustainably, and the importance of taking into account the aspirations of farmers and consumers in order to achieve this.
I obtained my BSc (2017) and MSc degree (2020) in Plant Sciences at Wageningen University, where I specialised in food systems analysis and natural resource management. During my MSc I did gained insights into these two topics through 1) interviews with Ethiopian farmers to explore the suitability of agronomic innovations in the context their aspirations, constraints, and existing plans for farm and livelihood improvement and 2) large-scale, high-resolution mapping of soil quality and soil threats which we used to develop spatially targeted agronomic advice, communicated to farmers through a mobile application. I started my PhD at the University of Twente in 2020.
I was a PhD researcher in the 4TU.DeSIRE programme.