Postdoctoral Research Associate in Environmental Change and Population Studies
Background
James R. Hull joined the Environmental Change Initiative (ECI) and the PSTC, working with Leah VanWey (Sociology) and Crystal Linkletter to examine how the transition from a barter economy to a cash economy influences social networks, agricultural intensification, and labor mobility. Jim recently completed his dissertation in the Department of Sociology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and was a predoctoral trainee at the Carolina Population Center. His dissertation, entitled Monetization: A Theory and Applications establishes a theoretical foundation for the sociological study of monetization and links the phenomenon to changes in social structure, lives, and livelihoods in the context of historically agricultural economies. His research interests also include the causes and consequences of out-migration at the place of origin, and the effects of social distance and spatial proximity on the processes of mechanization, intensification, and land use and land cover change. From 2004-2006, he participated in the National Science Foundation’s Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship at the Carolina Population Center, designed to foster interdisciplinary communication, collaboration, and improved research into population and environment dynamics. He has also held an interdisciplinary Weiss Urban Livability Fellowship through the Graduate School at UNC-Chapel Hill.