I see my academic work and commitment towards social justice as inexorably linked, each making the other more effective.

I’ve been involved in range of social movements since the early 2000s. While an undergraduate in Washington, DC, I became an organizer in the Global Justice Movement, a mobilization against exploitative global trade practices, usually centered around the IMF and World Bank summits. Because of the times, this movement also branched out to anti-war organizing against the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. In my latter years in the city, I focused my energy on union organizing with the Industrial Workers of the World.

In 2007, I moved to Twin Oaks Community in rural Virginia for several years. Founded in 1967, the community is one of the longest lasting egalitarian projects in the country. I also traveled to several other similar communities across the country, often as a delegate to the Federation of Egalitarian Communities.  While at Twin Oaks, I spent most of my working time either in the garden helping to grow food for 100 members, making rope for our rope products business, and working on the conflict resolution team.  Like many other members, I probably had 15-20 other jobs I did in the course of a given month.

Since moving north to work on my doctorate, I’ve been involved in a variety of local issues in western Massachusetts. These are usually related to worker ownership, waste, transportation, and other forms of infrastructure. Beyond my work with Pedal People (described in the academic section) I’ve been involved in regional worker cooperatives as a board member of the Valley Alliance of Worker Cooperatives. I’m also an advisory board member of the Springfield Materials Recycling Facility, which oversees the recycling systems used by almost all municipalities in western Massachusetts. Finally, I’m advisory board member for the Massachusetts Center for Employee Ownership, which provides training, education, and direct assistance to employee-owned businesses statewide.