Ellen Kohl

Ellen Kohl is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography & Environmental Systems at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Georgia (2015). Her research focuses on environmental justice governance, novel forms of environmental governance, and intersectional geographies. She examines how systems of oppression intersect with environmental policy and activism, particularly through the lens of the U.S. EPA and grassroots movements.

Her work critiques the Rights of Nature movement for reinforcing white liberal frameworks and explores Taiwan’s green diplomacy as a form of environmental governance. She also studies the role of science in children’s environmental health advocacy and the everyday food activism within Black Methodist churches in South Carolina.

Dr. Kohl has received notable awards, including a Fulbright Scholarship to Taiwan (2022–2023) and a National Science Foundation grant for children’s environmental health research. Her articles address topics like EPA policy under the Trump administration and the intersection of race, gender, and environmental justice. She teaches courses such as Race and Place and Race, Gender, and Environmental Justice.

• Education: Ph.D., University of Georgia, 2015
• Grants: NSF Grant (2022–2025), David and Lucille Packard Foundation Grant (2020)
• Labs/Teams: Collaborates with Dr. Priscilla McCutcheon on intersectional activism and food justice projects.