Laura A. Meek

Laura A. Meek is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia Okanagan, specializing in Medical Anthropology, Decolonial Science and Technology Studies, and East African research. She holds affiliations with interdisciplinary networks like the UBC-O Science and Technology Studies Collective and co-directs the Storying Otherwise: Creative Ethnographic Writing Hub.

• PhD, MA in Anthropology (University of California, Davis)
• MA in Women’s Studies (George Washington University)
• Honors BA in Comparative Human Development (University of Chicago)

Her research examines counterfeit pharmaceuticals and bodily epistemologies in Tanzania, framed through feminist, decolonial, and anti-racist lenses. She investigates leprosy elimination campaigns and fugitive science practices across Africa and Hong Kong, with recent work focusing on creative ethnographic prose and critical disability studies. Her publications span high-impact journals like Social Science & Medicine and Medical Anthropology Quarterly, addressing themes of radical uncertainty and world-making practices.

Laura’s 15 most recent articles (2021–2025) analyze: pharmaceutical counterfeits in East Africa, the temporal politics of leprosy, anti-colonial global health, and creative writing as research. Her work bridges Indian Ocean connections and STS frameworks to critique neocolonial health governance.

• 2025 Collaborative Research Mobility Award
• 2024 Wenner-Gren Workshop Grant
• 2023 MAE–MAT Early Career Paper Award
• 2021 Society for Humanistic Anthropology Creative Ethnographic Prose Prize
• 2018 Wenner-Gren Dissertation Grant
• 2013 NSF Doctoral Dissertation Grant

She supervises M.A. and Ph.D. students in UBC-O’s Interdisciplinary Graduate Studies programs, particularly in global health, African politics, and STS. Her professional service includes co-chairing the 2026 Cascadia Medical Anthropology Seminar and serving on the American Anthropological Association Nominations Committee.