Kerstin Nolte

Jun.-Prof. Dr. Kerstin Nolte is an Assistant Professor at Leibniz University Hannover and an Associate at the GIGA Institute for African Affairs. Her research focuses on large-scale land acquisitions in sub-Saharan Africa, rural development, and agricultural transformations. She has conducted fieldwork in Kenya, Mali, and Zambia, and contributed to high-profile initiatives like the Land Matrix.

Education: Dr. rer. Pol. from Georg-August University Göttingen (dissertation on large-scale land acquisitions), Diplom Geography from the University of Regensburg, and studies at Sorbonne Université Paris IV and Georg-August University Göttingen.

Current research emphasizes the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of land policies, with a focus on transparency and accountability in global land transactions. She has published in journals like Global Environmental Change and World Development, and co-authored policy briefs urging G20 nations to address land investment opacity.

Teaching includes courses on rural development in the Global South (University of Hamburg, 2016). Media contributions include interviews on land grabbing and its global implications.

Key affiliations include the GIGA’s 'Globalisation and Development' research programme and roles in projects like the Land Matrix Initiative (Phase I, 2013–2014).