About the Authors

Seela Aladuwaka is Associate Professor of Geography at Alabama State University, USA. Her research interests include Regional Geography, Social Impact Assessment, and gender and development. Seela has participated and conducted research well over two decades in social geographies and published widely including the two recent publications: “Women, Micro-Finance and Repayments Challengers: Sri Lankan Experience” in A Handbook of Gender and Development edited by Anne Coles, Leslie Gray, and Janet Momsen (Routledge, 2015) and, co-authored with Ann Oberhauser, “Out of the Kitchen: Gender, Empowerment, and Microfinance Program in the Global South” in Global Perspective on Gender and Space: Engaging Feminism and Development edited by Ann Oberhauser and Ibipo Johnston-Anumonwo (Routledge, 2014). Currently, her interest is centered on exploring poverty trends and patterns in the Black Belt corridor of Alabama.

Ram Alagan is Associate Professor of Geography at Alabama State University, USA. His research focuses on GIS, Civil Rights GIS, Environmental Impact Assessment, and Regional Studies. In over two decades of experience using GIS, he has published widely including three co-authored recent publications: “Gender mapping in post-disaster recovery: Lessons from Sri Lanka’s Tsunami.” in Gender, Development and Transnational Feminism (Routledge, 2013); “Participatory geospatial research of time use and mobility among rural Ugandan women” in Gender, Development and Transnational Feminism (Routledge, 2013); and “Participatory GIS for Environmental Zoning Plan: Case Study of the Madu Ganga Estuary, Sri Lanka” in Voices of Globalization: Research in Political Sociology (Vol. 21, 2013). Currently, he uses GIS to explore Civil Rights’ importance in the Black Belt of Alabama.

Mohammed T. Bani Salameh is Professor of Political Science at Yarmouk University. His research focuses on Democratization and Political Reform in Jordan, Human Rights, and Contemporary Middle East. In over 15 years of experience, he has published widely, including three co-authored recent publications: The identity crisis in Jordan: Historical paths and contemporary debates. Nationalities Papers – The Journal of Nationalism and Ethnicity, 44(6), 2016; Constitutional reforms in Jordan: A critical analysis. Digest of Middle East Studies, 24(2, Fall), 2015; The role of social media on the formation of political awareness among Jordanian University’s students: An empirical study on Al-al-Bayt University students, Al-Manarah for Research and Studies, 22(4B), 2016. Currently, his interest is to explore political reform in Jordan and human rights in Jordanian constitution. Bani Salameh is President and Founder of the Jordanian National Society for the Consolidation of Civil State and Member of the Global V-Dem team 2016–2017. He was a Fulbright Scholar to Clark Atlanta University, Atlanta, GA, 1995–1997.

Christopher Bradley is an Associate Professor of Sociology in the Division of Social Science at Troy University, USA. His current research interests include the intersection of religiosity and emotion, with a specific focus on how empathetic responses that vary as a function of religious affiliation. He is an expert in both quantitative and qualitative methods and statistical applications.

Kate Pride Brown is Assistant Professor of Sociology at the Georgia Institute of Technology, USA. Her research focuses upon environmental politics in Russia and the United States. Her forthcoming book, Saving the Sacred Sea (Oxford University Press, 2018) examines local efforts to protect Siberia’s Lake Baikal – the oldest, deepest, and largest freshwater lake in the world.

Jonathan Cellon is Associate Dean for the Center for Student Success at Troy University, USA. Previously he served as the Coordinator of Civic Engagement at Troy University. His research interests are centered upon food insecurity, deliberative community engagement, and K-16 educational achievement for low-income students.

Yew Wah ‘Jeffrey’ Chow is Assistant Professor in the Business Faculty at Buffalo State, The State University of New York, USA. Dr. Chow’s areas of research includes Islamic finance, global trade, financial technology (fintech), and human capital migration. He is particularly interested in the development of international financial centers, including capacity building and human capital development within the Islamic financial industry. He is currently working with several researchers on a research funded by the National Science Foundation that focuses on the Islamic financial industries in Malaysia and Bahrain.

Amanda M. Dewey is a Doctoral Student in the Department of Sociology at the University of Maryland, USA, and a Graduate Fellow in the Program for Society and the Environment. Her research interests include social psychology, environmental attitudes and values, and environmental movements. Her work has focused on environmental identities and the influence of life experiences on the development of environmentalism.

Ann H. Dubin is a Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Sociology at the University of Maryland, USA. Her work centers on political sociology and social movements. She has studied and written about conservative think tanks’ framing of environmental issues, and the use of environmentalist discourse by conservatives to promote an anti-immigration agenda. Her dissertation work examines mobilization through a comparative study of campaign strategy and volunteers’ motivations in the Trump and Clinton campaigns in Florida during the 2016 election.

Sharon Lindhorst Everhardt is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Troy University, USA. Her main research interests include the study of race, class, and gender, especially low-income populations of color. Her previous work has focused upon women and families of color and homeownership, and her publications include “Meeting the Needs of Mother and Families? Family Self-Sufficiency Programs and Goals of Homeownership” in Michigan Family Review and “Experiencing Race, Class, and Gender in Real Life: How Women Strive for Economic Self-sufficiency and Homeownership” in Advances in Gender Research. Currently, major projects concern poverty, food insecurity, social isolation, and community gardens in low-income areas of color in Alabama.

Dana R. Fisher is Professor in the Department of Sociology and Director of the Program for Society and the Environment at the University of Maryland, USA. Her research focuses on environmental policy, civic participation and activism more broadly. She has written extensively on climate politics in the United States and comparatively across nations, including in her first book: National Governance and the Global Climate Change Regime (Rowman & Littlefield, 2004). In addition to five books, she has also published her work in numerous peer-reviewed journals. Recent publications in Nature Climate Change, Environment & Planning C, and Climatic Change employ social network methods to understand the policy actors engaged in climate policy making in the United States at the federal and sub-national levels. Professor Fisher is currently leading the Climate Constituencies Project that studies climate and clean energy policy networks at the US federal and sub-national levels. For more information, see www.drfisher.umd.edu

Anya M. Galli Robertson is a Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Sociology and Graduate Fellow in the Program for Society and the Environment at the University of Maryland, USA. Her work centers on environmental inequality and social movements, with a particular emphasis on policy debates and political discourse. She has studied the emergence and diffusion of social movement tactics, the connections between civic participation and environmental stewardship, and mobilization in the climate movement, and is a researcher on the Climate Constituencies Project. Her dissertation work explores the foundations of environmental privilege, discursive power, and emissions disproportionality in the US coal-fired power industry.

Brenda Gill is a mixed-method prepared family Sociologist and Associate Professor of Sociology in the Department of Criminal Justice and Social Sciences, Alabama State University, USA. Her research focus is mostly international and generally examines topics related to families. Her research interests include: multiculturalism, diversity, family, media, violence, and other issues. Some of her more recent work includes an edited book with Sabella Abidde, Africans and the Exiled Life: Migration, Culture, and Globalization (Lexington Books, 2017); “Adolescents’ Gross Media Consumption in Guyana: Implications for Prevention Intervention” in International Humanities Review; and “Pan-Africanism and Women: Projections and Speculations for the Future” in Pan-Africanism in Modern Times: Challenges, Concerns and Constraints (Lexington Books, 2016).

Ajay Kapoor is a world-renowned expert on rolling contact fatigue, and is currently Pro-Vice Chancellor (International Research Engagement) and Professor of Engineering Design at Swinburne University of Technology, Australia. Previously he has held senior appointments in the United Kingdom at Newcastle University, University of Sheffield, and Leicester University. He also led the American Society for Mechanical Engineers (UK and Ireland Chapter) as Chairman. Professor Kapoor is responsible for international research engagement and development, and in particular focuses on India and Sarawak research development.

Yashpal Malik is Doctoral Candidate in Amity Institute of Social Sciences at Amity University, India. Prior to commencing doctoral studies, he worked with development sector organizations in the area of research, monitoring, and evaluation for national and international development programs in South Asia (India, Nepal, and Bhutan). He has significant experience in sampling surveys, need assessments, project impact assessments, and poverty measurement in various sectors such as education, skill development, livelihood, and socio-economic projects.

Lorena Mathien received her Ph.D. from the State University of New York at Buffalo, USA in Operations Management and Strategy in 2012. She maintains her Certified in Production and Inventory Management (CPIM) certification from the American Production and Inventory Control Society (APICS) and her Project Management Professional (PMP) certification from the Project Management Institute. She has over 17 years of industry experience and independently contracts on smaller projects with local companies.

Deborah Naybor received her Associates Degree in Forestry from Paul Smith’s College, USA, and went on to complete a Bachelor’s Degree in Literature, a Master’s of Professional Services Degree in Humanitarian Services Administration, a Master’s Degree in Global Gender Studies, and a Ph.D. in Human Geography. She has taught at various colleges and universities, in engineering, Asian studies, economic geography, and human rights. She is currently Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies at Paul Smith’s College, USA, with a focus on the environment and society.

Nirupama Prakash is currently serving as Director, Amity Institute of Social Sciences, Amity University, India. Her earlier positions include Chief, Women Studies and Societal Development Unit, Director, University Grants Commission – Centre for Women Studies, Chair, Department of Humanistic Studies and Coordinator, M.Phil program in Hospital & Health Systems Management at Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani, India, and Chair, Department of Humanities & Social Sciences at Jaypee University of Information and Technology, India. She has held positions in the US and the UK. She has been an invited scholar, consultant, guest speaker, and visiting faculty internationally. She teaches sociology, gender studies, health systems, and conflict management. She is currently working on projects sponsored by national and international agencies and has widely published in national and international books and journals.

Marcia Rossi is Professor of Psychology at Alabama State University, USA. Her research interests are in the area of pro-environmental behaviors and attitudes, STEM education for underrepresented students, and human factors’ issues as related to training and the environment. She has taught courses in Environmental Psychology, Human Factors Psychology, and Applied Behavior Analysis among others. Dr. Rossi is the recipient of many federally funded grants and has published numerous articles, proceedings, and chapters.

Emad Shdouh is Lecturer in the Department of Political Science at the Jordanian University. His research focuses on political elites and good governance. His most recent publications are as follows: Elite circulation: Case study of the Jordanian parliament: 1989–2016. Dirasat: Human and Social Sciences, Jordanian University, 2017; The economic impact of the flow of Syrian refugees on the Jordanian economy Almethqal for economic and administrative studies the world Islamic sciences and educations, 2(2), 2016; The impact of Arab Spring on political elite on Jordan. Journal of Social Science Kuwait University, 45(3), 2017. Shdouh is Director of No-restrictions Center for Parliamentary Studies, Amman, Jordan.

Eric Spears is the Mildred Miller Fort Foundation Eminent Scholar and Chair of Global Engagement at Columbus State University in Georgia, USA. He is also an Associate Professor of Geography. Dr. Spears’ research is mainly focused on Brazil, where he explores issues of political ecology, development, and the political economy of higher education. He is a Co-Director of a research program at the Federal University of São Carlos, Brazil. In addition, Dr. Spears is an alumni board member of the Asian Studies Development Program (ASDP) at the East-West Center in Hawai’i and a Fulbright recipient in South Korea.

Joseph McCartney Waggle is a Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Sociology at the University of Maryland, USA. His interests include the sociology of knowledge, environmental sociology, and science and technology studies. He has written on the role of scientific consensus in policy making and the impact of political debate in normal and post-normal science. His dissertation work critically analyzes the ways in which different political actors engage science and scientists in pursuit of their own political agendas in both the climate and energy policy arenas in the United States.

Robert O. White is an Educator, Legal Analyst, and Pastor with over 25 years of professional experience. He has taught in higher education for over 20 years and has accumulated a wealth of experience over the course of professional career. He served as In-house Legal Counsel for the Alabama Education Association and has served as government liaison and lobbyist for government and professional development agencies. He has produced several radio talk shows, contributed to many scholarly works, published three books, and is currently finishing three more on the topic of civil rights and spirituality. He has served in leadership capacities in the AFL-CIO, the Alabama Education Association, and is currently the President of the Alabama State University Education Association. He is a member of the Alabama Democratic Executive Committee and is currently, along with his wife, pastoring the Montgomery City of Refuge. He has been a member of the distinguished faculty of Alabama State University, USA, and also serves as Adjunct for other local colleges.

William Yagatich is a Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Sociology at the University of Maryland, USA, and a Research Associate at George Mason University’s Center for Climate Change Communication, USA. His work bridges the sociology of knowledge, environmental sociology, and the sociology of work and occupations. Currently, his research examines the negotiation of professional practice, expertise, and credibility when news media professionals present the science of climate change to their audiences.