Marisa Wilson

Dr. Marisa Wilson is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Geosciences at the University of Edinburgh, with cross-academy affiliations including the Global Development Academy, Global Justice Academy, Global Environment and Society Academy, Global Health Academy, and Global Agriculture and Food Systems. She is an active researcher who is currently accepting PhD students and leading multiple significant research projects.

• School of Geosciences, University of Edinburgh
• Global Development Academy
• Global Justice Academy
• Global Environment and Society Academy
• Global Health Academy
• Global Agriculture and Food Systems
• Sustainable Rural and Agricultural Development Research Group (University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica)
• Centre for Contemporary Latin American Studies

Dr. Wilson's research focuses on critical food geography, particularly examining Afrodescendant and Indigenous food heritage in Latin America and the Caribbean. Her work explores food and climate justice through decolonial and co-creative methodologies, investigating agrarian change, alternative food networks, transnational sugar histories, and moral economies. She employs ethnographic, oral history, archival, and arts-based methods, collaborating directly with Black and Indigenous scholar-activists, artists, academics, and young people from the Caribbean.

Her recent publications demonstrate consistent output across food systems sustainability, Caribbean agricultural history, and decolonial approaches to food studies. The research shows a clear trajectory toward increasingly collaborative and community-centered work, with emphasis on Indigenous knowledge systems and climate adaptation strategies.

• Best Personal Tutor Nomination (2021)
• California Alumni Association Grant (1997)
• Chancellor's Fellowship (2013)
• Good Research Practice Nomination (2022)
• Honourary lifetime member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society (2002)

Dr. Wilson actively supervises students and maintains a robust research program with multiple active grants totaling millions in funding. Her current projects include 'Towards Indigenous Seed Data Sovereignty for Climate Adaptation' and 'Building for health centred, net zero aligned Food Systems Transformation.' She serves as an external examiner for other institutions and regularly participates in international conferences and workshops.

She leads the Caribbean Food for Climate Justice Research Group and the Living Histories of Sugar project, both of which have substantial online presence and media coverage. These initiatives demonstrate her commitment to translating academic research into community action and public engagement.