Biography: Walter Hawthorne III is a Professor of African History and Chair of the History Department. His areas of research specialization are Upper Guinea, the Atlantic, and Brazil. He is particularly interested in the history of slavery and the slave trade. Much of his research has focused on African agricultural practices, religious beliefs, and family structures in the Old and New Worlds. His first book, Planting Rice and Harvesting Slaves: Transformations along the Guinea-Bissau Coast, 1400–1900 (Heinemann: 2003), explores the impact of interactions with the Atlantic, and particularly slave trading, on small-scale, decentralized societies. His most recent book, From Africa to Brazil: Culture, Identity, and an Atlantic Slave Trade 1600-1830 (Cambridge: 2010), examines the slave trade from Upper Guinea to Amazonia Brazil.  He has published in a range of scholarly journals such as Journal of African History, Luso-Brazilian Review, Slavery and Abolition, Africa, Journal of Global History, and American Historical Review.

Biography: Dr. Marcy Hessling O’Neil is assistant professor of anthropology and advisor for the Peace and Justice Studies program at Michigan State University. O’Neil has taught several of the core courses in Peace and Justice, including ANP 236 “Slacktivists, Activists, and Social Entrepreneurs.” She has conducted ethnographic research among students and their families in Benin, West Africa for nine years. Her research focuses on the social impact of higher education on the extended family, and on the role of international development on the educational system. O’Neil is a Fulbright alumna, McNair Scholar, and former President of the National Association of Student Anthropologists. She has served on various committees with the American Anthropological Association, including the Mentorship Task Force. Most recently, O’Neil was a reader for the Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders. O’Neil earned her Ph.D. in anthropology from Michigan State University.

Biography: José Jackson-Malete is based in the African Studies Center at Michigan State University within the Alliance for African Partnerships (AAP), a new initiative established by President Simon in 2016 to develop new, innovative ways of partnering with African institutions. She is a member of the AAP management team, with responsibilities for developing international collaborations; identifying and liaising with MSU and African partner organizations for management of research, development of research teams, implementation and evaluation of capacity building, and proposal development; coordinating and strategic management of international partnerships, especially those related to research and innovation; and exploration of grant opportunities for AAP initiatives. José was previously the Director of Research and Partnerships at the Botswana Institute for Technology Research and Innovation (BITRI), the Deputy Director of Research at the University of Botswana and a faculty member of the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus in Jamaica. She is a food scientist with Masters and PhD from Cornell University and Michigan State University, respectively, and has over 25 years experience in research, teaching and working in industry in Africa, the Caribbean and the USA, particularly within the Agriculture sector. She maintains an active research program that focuses on processing and adding value to indigenous fruit and vegetable products including the morama bean of Botswana and ackee fruit of Jamaica, ensuring quality and safety, contributing to food and nutrition security, while improving livelihoods for communities. José was born in St. Vincent in the Caribbean but spent the last 14 years living and working in Botswana. She has networks at higher education institutions and other organizations throughout the Caribbean and Africa.

Biography: Thomas Jayne’s career has been devoted to working with African colleagues to promote effective policy responses to poverty in Africa.  Jayne is Professor in the Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics at Michigan State University.  In June, 2015 he was named MSU Foundation Professor. He is also Adjunct Professor at the Indaba Agricultural Policy Research Institute in Lusaka, Zambia, and is a Distinguished Fellow of the African Association of Agricultural Economists.  He has mentored dozens of young Africa professionals and played a major role in building MSU’s partnerships with African research institutes, serving as co-director of several grants from the Gates Foundation focusing on building sustainable research capacity in Africa. He has over 25 years of experience conducting research on agricultural productivity and markets.