Matt Sparke

Matt Sparke is a Distinguished Professor of Politics at the University of California Santa Cruz. His interdisciplinary work spans geography, globalization, and global health, with a focus on the intersections of neoliberalism, citizenship, and geopolitics. He co-directs UCSC's Global and Community Health program and has authored two books: Introducing Globalization: Ties, Tensions and Uneven Integration (2013) and In the Space of Theory: Post-foundational Geographies of the Nation-State (2005).

• Born in Tonbridge, England (1967)
• B.A. and M.A. from University of Oxford (mentored by David Harvey)
• Ph.D. from University of British Columbia (advisor: Derek Gregory)
• Faculty at University of Washington (1995-2017)
• UCSC faculty since 2017

His research explores:

• Global Health: Analyzing pandemic responses, vaccine access, and farmworker health vulnerabilities under climate change
• Neoliberalism: Examining its manifestations in governance, citizenship, and health policy
• Geopolitics: Studying border politics, refugee sub-citizenship, and climate change narratives
• Methodology: Developing innovative approaches to global health data and community engagement

Recent publications focus on:

• Climate change's impact on farmworker health (2025)
• Neoliberal disease dynamics during pandemics (2024)
• Geopolitical economies of China's Greater Bay Area (2025)
• Critical geographies of philanthrocapitalism (2016)

Grants include:

• University of California Office of the President Climate Action Seed Grant for farmworker health research (2022-2025)