PhD research: Reading the Land: Present-Day Land Conflict and the Ghosts of Colonial-Era Environmental Engineering in Northern Uganda’s Acholi Region

Date
March 2021 to February 2025
Countries
Keywords
land conflicts
forced displacement
political ecology
coloniality
Research fields
History and Archaeology
Law and Political Science

My research traces the historical roots of several volatile land conflicts currently unfolding in northern Uganda’s Acholi region. By applying a longue durée lens within a political ecology framework, I analyze these contemporary land conflicts as part of the enduring legacy of colonial-era environmental engineering through sleeping sickness control and wildlife conservation in the Acholi region. The project relies on ethnographic research in the districts of Gulu, Nwoya, and Amuru, as well as on archival work in collections in Uganda, the U.S., and the U.K.