Bobby Joe Smith

Bobby Joe Smith is an Associate Professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois, with an affiliation in Food Science and Human Nutrition. He holds roles as an African American Studies Fellow at the Policy Design Lab and is part of the Center for Social & Behavioral Science. His research focuses on Food Justice, intersectional agriculture, and the civil rights movement’s influence on food systems. Smith has been recognized with prestigious awards including the ACLS Fellowship (2021), HRI Prize (2024), and NEH Fellowship (2020).

His work bridges social sciences with food systems, exploring topics like social unrest’s impact on food movements and the role of food in civil rights activism. Recent publications analyze the Ferguson protests’ implications for food justice and the historical narratives of Mississippi’s civil rights era. His interdisciplinary approach integrates policy design and community action frameworks.

Smith’s grants and fellowships reflect sustained engagement with systemic inequities in agriculture and food policy. He collaborates across institutions, focusing on global food sovereignty and agroecology. His book *Food Power Politics* (2023) has gained significant scholarly attention and media coverage for its innovative analysis of food narratives in social justice movements.