Ongoing Projects

Contentious Urbanization

How claims of belonging and local political connections contribute to the contentious politics of urbanization across the world.

  • Book project on the contentious politics of African urbanization

  • PI on Swedish Research Council funded grant “Political Change and Local Governance in Emerging Cities”

  • Co-I on Research Council of Norway funded grant “Political Transformation in African Cities”

  • Media Event Database on forced evictions and demolitions in urban Africa

Respect, recognition, and Democracy

How the demand for respect and social recognition shapes democracy and development.

  • Theorizing how demands for respect and recognition refine theories of political accountability and deliberative democracy

  • Ghanaian elections and campaign stops database

Politics of Daily life

How spontaneity and time shapes politics, and the methods we use to understand political life.

  • Theorizing how institutions change in the context of everyday life