I am a historian and anthropologist of West Africa, with a geographic focus on Senegal, Guinea, and Mali. My research centers on the history of science and the environment, ethnic and state formation, sacred engagements with the earth, and the politics of historical production.

My book, A Ritual Geology: Gold and Subterranean Knowledge in Savanna West Africa (Duke University Press, 2022) is available at Duke UP and on Amazon, among other venues. The book is freely available as an Open Access Edition here.

I am Associate Professor of History at New York University where I teach courses on African history for all time periods in addition to courses on the history of science, technology, and the environment.