Sunaura Taylor

Sunaura Taylor is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, & Management at UC Berkeley, directing the Disabled Ecologies Lab. She holds a PhD in American Studies from New York University, an MFA in Art Practice from UC Berkeley, and a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies from Goddard College. Her research bridges disability studies, environmental humanities, and animal ethics, emphasizing intersectional critiques of ableism and ecological exploitation.

Her work interrogates how disability shapes human-nonhuman relationships, particularly in contexts of environmental devastation. Notable publications include Beasts of Burden (2017), which redefines animal liberation through disability justice, and Disabled Ecologies (2024), analyzing contaminated landscapes like the Tucson Superfund site. Taylor’s interdisciplinary approach integrates art, scholarship, and activism to address multispecies justice.

Awards include the 2018 American Book Award and grants from the Joan Mitchell Foundation. She advises graduate students in critical disability studies/crip studies and critical animal studies, prioritizing disabled students navigating academia. Her research group explores themes of environmental violence, interdependence, and decolonial ecologies.