Keston Perry

Keston Perry is an Assistant Professor of African American Studies, Political Economy, and Geography at UCLA. He holds a PhD from SOAS, University of London (2017), and prior degrees from Newcastle University (M.Sc., 2013) and the University of the West Indies (B.A., 2010). His research focuses on intersections of race, colonialism, climate justice, and Caribbean political economy. Perry has held positions at Williams College (Africana Studies), the University of the West of England (Economics lecturer), and the UNCTAD as an Economic Affairs Officer. He currently serves as Associate Editor of Geoforum and editorial board member of Review of Radical Political Economics.

His work critiques how colonial legacies and global financial systems marginalize Caribbean communities in climate crises. Key themes include plantation economies, climate reparations, and the entanglement of racial capitalism with ecological disasters. Perry has advised on climate policy, contributed to international media (e.g., Guardian’s “Cotton Capital” podcast), and published widely on postcolonial development, debt crises, and global governance structures.

His current book project examines plantation imperialism and radical humanism in the Caribbean. Perry’s research bridges interdisciplinary scholarship, emphasizing anti-colonial frameworks to reimagine economic and environmental justice for marginalized communities.