Staff profile

I received my doctorate in Anthropology from Emory University, where I also gained a Master’s degree in Global Health. After post-doctoral research positions (in Global Health at Emory, and in Evolutionary Anthropology at UCL), I began my teaching career at Durham in 2014, and then taught medical anthropology at UCL for three years (2015-18). I took up the position of Associate Professor at Durham in 2023.

My research focuses on the following topics:

1. Hunger and thirst. In collaboration with public health professionals and NGOs, I have carried out mixed-methods research on food and water insecurity in Ethiopia and Afghanistan. This has led to new ways of measuring access to food and water at the household level. 
2. Health and inequality. Wealth and poverty are fundamental determinants of health. How do we measure socio-economic status in settings where wealth is based primarily not on cash income, but on ownership of livestock or access to land -- or where the currencies in which status is reckoned are contested, or in flux?
3. Political ecologies of health. Climate change and biodiversity decline are forcing us to reconsider the foundations of health and disease, and shifting focus from the level of individuals and populations to the level of ecosystem and planet. 

My current work examines the intersection of these issues in the context of dam and irrigation schemes that are transforming the landscape of Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley (link to Open Access paper here). As co-founder of the Omo-Turkana Research Network, I have helped to bring together researchers across disciplines and from the global North and South to draw attention to the changes underway in this river basin, and the challenges they present for the people of the region.

I welcome enquiries from students interested in any aspect of medical anthropology or the political ecology of health.

• child development
• hunger and thirst
• mixed methods and epistemologies
• socio-ecological change
• social inequality
• Ethiopia
• Horn of Africa

• 2015: Coordinator, Omo-Turkana Research Network:
• 2012 - 2014: Research Associate in Evolutionary Anthropology, UCL:
• 2011 - 2012: Fogarty Postdoctoral Fellow, Rollins School of Public Health:

Chapter in book

• Mapping on the move. Participatory mapping with and by pastoralists
  
  Flintan, F., Paliwal, A., Orenstein, A., Sulieman, H. M., Moreu, M., Tekle Loyale, D., & Stevenson, E. G. J. (2026). Mapping on the move. Participatory mapping with and by pastoralists. In M. K. McCall, A. Álvarez Larrain, M. N. Azong Cho, & J. Panek (Eds.), A Research Agenda for Participatory Mapping and PPGIS (pp. 133-152). Edward Elgar. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781035322978.00014
• Ethiopia’s ‘Blue Oil’? Hydropower, Irrigation and Development in the Omo-Turkana Basin
  
  Stevenson, E. G., & Kamski, B. (2021). Ethiopia’s ‘Blue Oil’? Hydropower, Irrigation and Development in the Omo-Turkana Basin. In E. Gabbert, F. Gebresenbet, J. Galaty, & G. Schlee (Eds.), Lands of the future: Anthropological perspectives on pastoralism, land deals and tropes of modernity in Eastern Africa (pp. 292-308). Berghahn Books.
• Resilience dynamics in a rapidly changing social-ecological system: Shifting inequalities in Ethiopia's Lower Omo Valley
  
  Hodbod, J., Stevenson, E. G., & Fekadu Mulugeta, M. (2021). Resilience dynamics in a rapidly changing social-ecological system: Shifting inequalities in Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley. In J. Lautze, M. McCartney, & J. Gibson (Eds.), The Omo-Turkana Basin: Cooperation for Sustainable Water Management. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003169338
• Child Well-Being: Anthropological Perspectives.
  
  Stevenson, E., & Worthman, C. (2014). Child Well-Being: Anthropological Perspectives. In A. Ben-Arieh, F. Casas, I. Frønes, & J. Korbin (Eds.), Handbook of Child Well-Being: Theories, Methods and Policies in Global Perspective (pp. 485-512). Springer Verlag. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-9063-8_20
• Maternal education; an Ethiopia.
  
  Stevenson, E. (2013). Maternal education; an Ethiopia. In J. Ainsworth (Ed.), Sociology of Education: An A-to-Z Guide. SAGE Publications.
• Two rivers: water and power in Ethiopia.
  
  Stevenson, E., & Mekonnen, J. (2012). Two rivers: water and power in Ethiopia. In E. Mendenhall & A. Koon (Eds.), Environmental Health Narratives: A Reader for Youth. University of new Mexico Press.

Journal Article

• Combining remote sensing and local perspectives uncovers divergent ecosystem service change in the Lower Omo, Ethiopia
  
  Thompson, H. J., Tebbs, E. J., Hodbod, J., Gaworek-Michalczenia, M. F., Schreckenberg, K., Stevenson, E. G., Kulumedere, B., Hurd, W., Tegengne, E., & Ayele, Y. (2026). Combining remote sensing and local perspectives uncovers divergent ecosystem service change in the Lower Omo, Ethiopia. Environmental and Sustainability Indicators, 31, Article 101285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indic.2026.101285
• Changing land tenure and livelihood pressures reshape fire use in a dynamic social-ecological system
  
  Thompson, H., Tebbs, E., Schreckenberg, K., Hodbod, J., Stevenson, E., Gaworek-Michalczenia, M., Hurd, W., Dedebe, B., Tegengne, E., & Ayele, Y. (2026). Changing land tenure and livelihood pressures reshape fire use in a dynamic social-ecological system. Ecology and Society, 31(3), Article 27. https://doi.org/10.5751/es-17391-310327
• Sedentarization and Child Health: A Case Study of the Nutritional Status of Children Under 5 Years Old in the Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia
  
  Keestra, S. M., Kabalo, B. Y., Kharati Koopaei, E., Buffavand, L., Demissie Gemebo, T., Ayele, Y., & Stevenson, E. G. J. (2025). Sedentarization and Child Health: A Case Study of the Nutritional Status of Children Under 5 Years Old in the Lower Omo Valley, Ethiopia. American Journal of Human Biology, 37(10), Article e70154. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajhb.70154
• Poverty and Wealth without a Ladder? An Appraisal of the Stages of Progress Method among Agro–Pastoralists in Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley
  
  Stevenson, E. G. J., Molenaar, J., Pertaub, D., & Tekle, D. (2025). Poverty and Wealth without a Ladder? An Appraisal of the Stages of Progress Method among Agro–Pastoralists in Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley. Field Methods, 37(1), 61-76. https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822x231225904
• Between a rock and a hard place: A geosocial approach to water insecurity in Kabul
  
  Hamidi, M. D., Haenssgen, M. J., Vasiljevic, M., Greenwell, H. C., & Stevenson, E. G. J. (2024). Between a rock and a hard place: A geosocial approach to water insecurity in Kabul. Water Security, 22, Article 100177. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasec.2024.100177
• David Turton (1940–2023)
  
  Stevenson, J. (2024). David Turton (1940–2023). Anthropology Today, 40(1), 20. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8322.12865
• Controversy Over Tongue-Tie: Divisions in the Community of Healthcare Professionals
  
  Larrain, M., & Stevenson, E. G. (2022). Controversy Over Tongue-Tie: Divisions in the Community of Healthcare Professionals. Medical Anthropology, 41(4), 446-459. https://doi.org/10.1080/01459740.2022.2056843
• Connecting the dots between climate change, household water insecurity, and migration
  
  Stoler, J., Brewis, A., Kangmennang, J., Keough, S. B., Pearson, A. L., Rosinger, A. Y., Stauber, C., & Stevenson, E. G. (2021). Connecting the dots between climate change, household water insecurity, and migration. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 51, 36-41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2021.02.008
• Perinatal mental distress in a rural Ethiopian community: a critical examination of psychiatric labels
  
  Molenaar, J., Hanlon, C., Alem, A., Wondimagegn, D., Medhin, G., Prince, M., & Stevenson, E. G. (2020). Perinatal mental distress in a rural Ethiopian community: a critical examination of psychiatric labels. BMC Psychiatry, 20(1), Article 223. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-020-02646-5
• Water insecurity compounds the global coronavirus crisis
  
  Staddon, C., Everard, M., Mytton, J., Octavianti, T., Powell, W., Quinn, N., Uddin, S., Young, S., Miller, J., Budds, J., Geere, J., Meehan, K., Charles, K., Stevenson, E., Vonk, J., & Mizniak, J. (2020). Water insecurity compounds the global coronavirus crisis. Water International, 45(5), 416-422. https://doi.org/10.1080/02508060.2020.1769345
• Water access transformations: Metrics, infrastructure, and inequities
  
  Stevenson, E. G. (2019). Water access transformations: Metrics, infrastructure, and inequities. Water Security., 8, Article 100047. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasec.2019.100047
• Social-ecological change in the Omo-Turkana basin: A synthesis of current developments
  
  Hodbod, J., Stevenson, E. G., Akall, G., Akuja, T., Angelei, I., Bedasso, E. A., Buffavand, L., Derbyshire, S., Eulenberger, I., Gownaris, N., Kamski, B., Kurewa, A., Lokuruka, M., Mulugeta, M. F., Okenwa, D., Rodgers, C., & Tebbs, E. (2019). Social-ecological change in the Omo-Turkana basin: A synthesis of current developments. AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment, 48(10), 1099-1115. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-018-1139-3
• Pipe Dreams: Water, Development and the Work of The Imagination in Ethiopia's Lower Omo Valley
  
  Pertaub, D., & Stevenson, E. G. (2019). Pipe Dreams: Water, Development and the Work of The Imagination in Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley. Nomadic Peoples, 23(2), 177-194. https://doi.org/10.3197/np.2019.230202
• “Do Our Bodies Know Their Ways?” Villagization, Food Insecurity, and Ill-Being in Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley
  
  Stevenson, E. G., & Buffavand, L. (2018). “Do Our Bodies Know Their Ways?” Villagization, Food Insecurity, and Ill-Being in Ethiopia’s Lower Omo Valley. African Studies Review, 61(01), 109-133. https://doi.org/10.1017/asr.2017.100
• Distribution and Numbers of Pygmies in Central African Forests
  
  Olivero, J., Fa, J. E., Farfán, M. A., Lewis, J., Hewlett, B., Breuer, T., Carpaneto, G. M., Fernández, M., Germi, F., Hattori, S., Head, J., Ichikawa, M., Kitanaishi, K., Knights, J., Matsuura, N., Migliano, A., Nese, B., Noss, A., Ekoumou, D. O., … Nasi, R. (2016). Distribution and Numbers of Pygmies in Central African Forests. PLoS ONE, 11(1), Article e0144499. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0144499
• Community Water Improvement, Household Water Insecurity, and Women’s Psychological Distress: An Intervention and Control Study in Ethiopia
  
  Stevenson, E., Ambelu, A., Caruso, B., Tesfaye, Y., & Freeman, M. (2016). Community Water Improvement, Household Water Insecurity, and Women’s Psychological Distress: An Intervention and Control Study in Ethiopia. PLoS ONE, 11(4). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0153432
• Comment on A.Wutich and A. Brewis, 'Food, water, and scarcity: Toward a broader anthropology of resource insecurity'
  
  Stevenson, E., & Hadley, C. (2014). Comment on A.Wutich and A. Brewis, ’Food, water, and scarcity: Toward a broader anthropology of resource insecurity’. Current Anthropology, 55(4), 459-460. https://doi.org/10.1086/677311
• Rapidly rising food prices and the experience of food insecurity in urban Ethiopia: impacts on health and well-being.
  
  Hadley, C., Stevenson, E., Tadesse, Y., & Belachew, T. (2012). Rapidly rising food prices and the experience of food insecurity in urban Ethiopia: impacts on health and well-being. Social Science & Medicine, 75(12), 2412-2419. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.09.018
• Water insecurity in 3 dimensions: water and women's psychosocial distress in Ethiopia.
  
  Stevenson, E., Greene, L., Maes, K., Ambelu, A., Tesfaye, Y., Rheingans, R., & Hadley, C. (2012). Water insecurity in 3 dimensions: water and women’s psychosocial distress in Ethiopia. Social Science & Medicine, 75(2), 392-400. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.03.022

Other (Print)

• Dealing with unforeseen consequences: Methods and ethics in an Ethiopian primary school
  
  Stevenson, E. (2014). Dealing with unforeseen consequences: Methods and ethics in an Ethiopian primary school (pp. 6-7). Anthropology of Children and Youth Interest Group Newsletter.

Report

• An extreme citizen science approach to digital mapping in Ethiopia
  
  Stevenson, E., Moreu, M., & Tekle, D. (2022). An extreme citizen science approach to digital mapping in Ethiopia. https://doi.org/10.51414/sei2022.036