Faculty Advisors
During their first semester at Tufts, students are assigned an academic advisor who will be their advisor until they declare their major (before the end of their sophomore year). Students majoring in Environmental Studies must select an advisor from the list below and list that advisor on their major declaration form. Faculty on this list may be on leave or be at advising capacity, therefore, students must email to inquire first before listing them. If you need help finding an advisor or deciding who might align best with your interests, contact Dr. Sara Gomez at sara.gomez@tufts.edu. Visit our ENVS Step-by-Step guide for more information on becoming an ENVS major.
List of Faculty Advisors
Track I: Environmental Science
Benjamin Davies
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Environmental anthropology, environmental data, paleoecology, forager and pastoralist land use, climate adaptation, serious games
John Durant
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Expertise: Air and water pollution
Sara Gomez
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Plant ecology, Plant-insect interactions, Invasive Species, Sustainable Agriculture
David Gute
Civil and Environmental Engineering
Expertise: Environmental health, Environmental and social Justice
Andrew Kemp
Earth and Ocean Sciences
Expertise: Sea-level research, Wetlands, Coastal management, Climate change
Hassaan Khan
Environmental Studies and Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning
Expertise: Water-energy-food nexus, Urban water systems, Transboundary water conflicts, Hydroeconomics
Karen Kosinski
Environmental Studies and Community Health
Expertise: Environmental health, Environmental justice, One Health, Global health, Water resources, Sanitation, Infectious diseases
Colin M. Orians
Biology & Environmental Studies
Expertise: Plant Biology, Tropical Ecology, Food systems, Conservation
J. Michael Reed
Biology
Expertise: Conservation, Habitat Loss, Animal Behavior, Biodiversity
Track II: Sustainability, Policy, and Equity
Alexander Blanchette
Anthropology
Expertise: Industrial agriculture, Ecology, Ethnography of labor, Food systems
Silvia Bottinelli
Visual and Critical Studies
Expertise: History and theory of environmental art, Eco-art, Food-based art, Art and environmental activism, Social practice and public art
Ujjayant Chakravorty
Economics
Expertise: Resource and environmental economics, Energy and development, Food systems
Tatiana Chudakova
Anthropology
Expertise: Medical anthropology, science and technology, environment, ethnicity and indigeneity, nationalism, post-socialism
Benjamin Davies
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Environmental anthropology, environmental data, paleoecology, forager and pastoralist land use, climate adaptation, serious games
Patrick Forber
Philosophy
Expertise: Ecology, Evolutionary biology, Philosophy of biology, Philosophy of science
Sara Gomez
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Plant ecology, Plant-insect interactions, Invasive Species, Sustainable Agriculture
Hassaan Khan
Environmental Studies and Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning
Expertise: Water-energy-food nexus, Urban water systems, Transboundary water conflicts, Hydroeconomics
Karen Kosinski
Environmental Studies and Community Health
Expertise: Environmental health, Environmental justice, One Health, Global health, Water resources, Sanitation, Infectious diseases
Nimah Mazaheri
Political Science
Expertise: Comparative political economy, Developing countries, Oil and mining sectors, Government-business relations
Colin M. Orians
Biology & Environmental Studies
Expertise: Plant Biology, Tropical Ecology, Food systems, Conservation
Alisha Rankin
History
Expertise: Early modern Europe, History of science and medicine, Women's history, History of the body and sexuality
George Scarlett
Child Studies and Human Development
Expertise: Child-Nature Connection, Ecological literacy Development
Caleb Scoville (on leave Fall 2024)
Sociology
Expertise: Environmental sociology, Science and technology studies, Political sociology, Economic sociology, Social and political theory
Ninian Stein
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Environmental Policy, Environmental Justice, Environmental Communication, Landscape Change, Archaeology, Environmental Anthropology
Track III: Environmental Communications
Silvia Bottinelli
Visual and Critical Studies
Expertise: History and theory of environmental art, Eco-art, Food-based art, Art and environmental activism, Social practice and public art
Benjamin Davies
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Environmental anthropology, environmental data, paleoecology, forager and pastoralist land use, climate adaptation, serious games
Julie Dobrow
Child Study and Human Development
Interdisciplinary Studies
Expertise: Media literacy, Children and media, Ethnicity/gender and media, Adolescents and media use
Sara Gomez
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Plant ecology, Plant-insect interactions, Invasive Species, Sustainable Agriculture
Colin M. Orians
Biology & Environmental Studies
Expertise: Plant Biology, Tropical Ecology, Food systems, Conservation
Alisha Rankin
History
Expertise: Early modern Europe, History of science and medicine, Women's history, History of the body and sexuality
Modhumita Roy
English
Expertise: Environmental humanities, Anglophone literatures of Africa and the Africa diaspora, South Asian literature, Feminist theory, Literary theory
George Scarlett
Child Studies and Human Development
Expertise: Child-Nature Connection, Ecological literacy Development
Ninian Stein
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Environmental Policy, Environmental Justice, Environmental Communication, Landscape Change, Archaeology, Environmental Anthropology
Markus Wilczek
German
Expertise: Literature and the Environment, Discourses of Sustainability; Literary and Cultural Theory, Theories of Reading; Intersections of Literature, Science, and Philosophy; Media Studies
Track IV: Food Systems, Nutrition, and the Environment
Alexander Blanchette
Anthropology
Expertise: Industrial agriculture, Ecology, Ethnography of labor, Food systems
Silvia Bottinelli
Visual and Critical Studies
Expertise: History and theory of environmental art, Eco-art, Food-based art, Art and environmental activism, Social practice and public art
Benjamin Davies
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Environmental anthropology, environmental data, paleoecology, forager and pastoralist land use, climate adaptation, serious games
Ujjayant Chakravorty
Economics
Expertise: Resource and environmental economics, Energy and development, Food systems
Kyle Emerick
Economics
Expertise: Agricultural and Resource Economics, Technology adoption by farmers, Economics of agricultural development, Development Economics, Applied Econometrics
Sara Gomez
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Plant ecology, Plant-insect interactions, Invasive Species, Sustainable Agriculture
Hassaan Khan
Environmental Studies and Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning
Expertise: Water-energy-food nexus, Urban water systems, Transboundary water conflicts, Hydroeconomics
Karen Kosinski
Environmental Studies and Community Health
Expertise: Environmental health, Environmental justice, One Health, Global health, Water resources, Sanitation, Infectious diseases
Colin M. Orians
Biology and Environmental Studies
Expertise: Plant Biology, Tropical Ecology, Food systems, Conservation
Cathy Stanton
Anthropology
Expertise: Food systems, Intersection of cultural anthropology and public history, advocacy and activism
Ninian Stein
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Environmental Policy, Environmental Justice, Environmental Communication, Landscape Change, Archaeology, Environmental Anthropology
Benjamin Wolfe
Biology
Expertise: Food microbiology, Evolution, Metagenomics, Comparative genomics/transcriptomics, Genome engineering, In situ community reconstructions
Track V: Environmental Humanities
Silvia Bottinelli
Visual and Critical Studies
Expertise: History and theory of environmental art, Eco-art, Food-based art, Art and environmental activism, Social practice and public art
Sara Gomez
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Plant ecology, Plant-insect interactions, Invasive Species, Sustainable Agriculture
Colin M. Orians
Biology & Environmental Studies
Expertise: Plant Biology, Tropical Ecology, Food systems, Conservation
Modhumita Roy
English
Expertise: Environmental humanities, Anglophone literatures of Africa and the Africa diaspora, South Asian literature, Feminist theory, Literary theory
James Rice (on leave until Spring 2026)
History
Expertise: Early America, Native American history, Environmental History
Ninian Stein
Environmental Studies
Expertise: Environmental Policy, Environmental Justice, Environmental Communication, Landscape Change, Archaeology, Environmental Anthropology
Markus Wilczek
German
Expertise: Literature and the Environment, Discourses of Sustainability; Literary and Cultural Theory, Theories of Reading; Intersections of Literature, Science, and Philosophy; Media Studies