Professor Analiese Richard receives Fulbright Grant

Analiese Richard, associate professor of anthropology in the School of International Studies, has been awarded a prestigious Fulbright U.S. Scholar grant to conduct ethnographic field research in Mexico during the 2015-16 academic year.

The Fulbright Scholar Program awards some 800 teaching and research grants to faculty and experienced professionals in a wide variety of academic and professional fields abroad each year.  

"I know I speak for everyone at SIS in saying we're really proud of Annie for earning this very competitive award," said Bill Herrin, director of the School of International Studies and professor of economics. "It's a testament to the quality of her work. The prestige associated with the Fulbright Scholar program is obvious from even just a few minutes of online research.  As the late Sen. J. William Fulbright once said about the program he founded in 1946, 'The essence of this intercultural education is the acquisition of empathy - the ability to see the world as others see it, and to allow for the possibility that others may see something we have failed to see.'   

"This is also the essence of SIS and Annie Richard," Herrin said. "And it helps advance one of Pacific's core objectives - to prepare every student for success in a global and multicultural world. I'm honestly thrilled."  

Richard, who is fluent in Spanish, will examine how Mexican scientists participate in public life. Her goal is to gain new insight into the role of experts in democratic society.  

"Natural scientists are increasingly called upon both to explain the natural world and to guide societies in adapting to environmental crises such as climate change and loss of biodiversity," she said. "However, moral authority poses a challenge to scientists in convincing both politicians and the public to take a particular course of action. These questions are also relevant to the U.S., where scientists continue to face challenges to their credibility in the public sphere."

Richard will be hosted by the Center for Research on North America at the National Autonomous University of Mexico in Mexico City, working alongside colleagues Edit Antal and Camelia Tigau. 

"I am grateful for the support of my Pacific colleagues, SIS Director Bill Herrin, Rena Fraden, dean of the College of the Pacific, and Fellowship Advisor Susan Weiner, who all played a role in the creation of this project," she said. "I am honored to have been chosen by the Fulbright Commission, and very excited to get to work on the project!"  

Richard earned her master's and doctoral degrees in anthropology at UC Berkeley. She is the author of book chapters on Mexico's food sovereignty movement and democratic change in Mexico, and has published papers on agriculture and rural development in Mexico.   At Pacific, she teaches courses including Anthropology of Food, Physical Anthropology and Antropologia Cultural. Her teaching has been recognized multiple times. Honors include a 2007 Outstanding Teacher of the Year award from the School of International Studies and a 2013 Eberhardt Teacher-Scholar Award.