My work situates itself in the perspectives of postcolonial studies, social movements, intercultural communication, migratory processes and globalization through its investigation into issues of identity, gender, culture, class, race and space/geography. I am the author of Visions of Zion: Ethiopians and Rastafari in the Search for the Promised Land (NYU Press, 2014) and have experience in the fields of education, communications, journalism, publishing, international development and the not-for-profit sectors.

I hold a PhD in Communications from McGill University and a Master's in English Literature from the University of Toronto, and have taught and lectured at both the college and university levels in Ethiopia, Canada and Jamaica. My writing has appeared in international publications such as the New York Times, Guardian, NPR, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone and many others. In addition, as a Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Officer, I helped to develop Cuso International's monitoring and evaluation system for Latin America and the Caribbean and am a member of the Monitoring and Evaluation Community of Practice in Ottawa, Ontario. I presently act as consultant to international development organizations as well as individuals.

I have volunteered as a team leader working with Habitat for Humanity's Global Village program in Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Guyana, Kenya and Senegal. I have also completed extensive fieldwork in Ethiopia, Jamaica and Costa Rica. My research into these areas has been supported by both fellowships from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and the Bob Ward Fellowship.