Anne Kuria

Phone: +254720990372

Room Details: Long distance learning student based at the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), UN Avenue, Gigiri, Nairobi, Kenya

Other professional profiles

ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Anne_Kuria
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-kuria-134b0916/
Academia: https://bangor.academia.edu/AnneKuria

Qualifications

Master of Environmental Studies and Community Development, Kenyatta University, Kenya (2005- 2008)
Bachelor of Environmental Studies and Community Development (First Class Honours), Kenyatta University, Kenya (2001 to 2004)

PhD Title (or subject area)

How ‘local’ is local knowledge? exploring the potential for utilising local knowledge to inform land restoration options across scales

Supervisors

Dr Timothy Pagella and Dr Fergus Sinclair
Co-Supervisors (ICRAF): Dr. Edmundo Barrios and Prof. Catherine Muthuri

Biography

I am a third year PhD in Agroforestry student in the School of Environment, Natural Resources and Geography (SENRGy), College of Natural Sciences (CNS); Bangor University. I was born and raised in Kenya. My main interest and passion has always been exploring the ‘Environment-Development’ Nexus. For my Masters degree, I focused on ‘Assessment of the effects of habitat transformation on the Nairobi National Park and Kitengela ecosystem’. After graduating with a Masters degree in Environmental Studies and Community Development in 2008, I worked as a freelance social science researcher and data analyst. I am also a registered Environmental Impact Assessments and Audits Expert, and have worked with organizations such as the Kenya Wildlife Service (2004-2005). Since March 2010 to present, I work with the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) as a Research Assistant in the Systems Science Domain; whose research focus is to promote resilient productivity and profitability of agricultural systems with trees. Therefore, my PhD study outputs contribute to not only my academic growth and achievements but also through producing practical and innovative outputs that inform ongoing and future research interventions.

Research overview

My research focuses on the application of participatory social research methods to elicit local knowledge to complement scientific knowledge on options to attaining sustainable intensification of diverse agricultural systems to enhance food security, improve livelihoods and promote ecological resilience of mixed tree-crop-livestock agricultural systems. I am passionate about land-use dynamics, ecosystem service flow patterns, land and soil management and restoration; with my current study aimed at producing science-based findings that inform the design of context-specific, diverse and inclusive land restoration and management options across a wide range of systems in Eastern Africa.

Publications

Mutemi, M., Njenga, M., Lamond, G., Kuria, A., Öborn, I., Muriuki, J., & Sinclair, F. L. (2017). 12 Using local knowledge to understand challenges and opportunities for enhancing agricultural productivity in Western Kenya. Sustainable Intensification in Smallholder Agriculture: An Integrated Systems Research Approach, 177.

Gwali, S., Agaba, H., Balitta, P., Hafashimana, D., Nkandu, J., Kuria, A., & Sinclair, F. (2015). Tree species diversity and abundance in coffee farms adjacent to areas of different disturbance histories in Mabira forest system, central Uganda. International Journal of Biodiversity Science, Ecosystem Services & Management, 11(4), 309-317.

Muriuki, J. K., Kuria, A., Muthuri, C. W., Mukuralinda, A., Simons, A. J., & Jamnadass, R. H. (2014). Testing Biodegradable Seedling Containers as an Alternative for Polythene Tubes in Tropical Small-Scale Tree Nurseries. Small-scale forestry, 13(2), 127-142.

Affiliations

World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF)

Registered Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Lead Expert

Member of the African Network for Soil Biology and Fertility (AfNet)