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People

Seth Cook

Seth Cook was a senior researcher in IIED's Natural Resources research group until March 2019

Full biography

Cook's areas of expert knowledge include natural resource management, agriculture, energy and ethnographic research methods. He has worked in China on programmes that promoted sustainable development and environmental good practice. 

Expertise

Natural resource management, agriculture, energy, ethnographic research methods, project management.

Before IIED
  • Operations director, China for a Global Shift Initiative, WWF China
  • China programme coordinator (Beijing office head), IUCN China Programme
  • Consultant for WWF and IUCN

Education:

  • PhD Environmental Studies, Yale University
  • MA Environmental Studies, Yale University
  • MA International Relations, Yale University
  • BA Asian Studies, Amherst College

Interviews

IIED expert interviews: Seth Cook
Seth Cook's picture
ResearchGate
Google Scholar
 
Languages: English, Chinese (fluent)

Seth Cook's blog posts

Smallholder farmer with pumpkins she harvested in her maize field in Chongwe, Zambia (Photo: Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

We need to safeguard biodiversity and promote diverse diets

Blog, May 2018
A huge selection of photos are displayed in a Peru supermarket (Photo: Teresa Stanton, Creative Commons, via Flickr)

Nourishing diversity in our food systems

Blog, Oct 2017
A Zambian farmer in his maize field. The overdependence on maize is having a negative impact on diets in Zambia (Photo: Wesley Wakunuma)

Promoting diversity on the farm – and the plate

Blog, Jun 2017
The fruit market is dominated by a small number of varieties that can withstand long distance shipping and meet supermarket demands for uniformity (Photo: Dirk Loop, Creative Commons via Flickr)

Why food diversity must be on the menu

Blog, Oct 2016
Women harvesting vegetables in Shanggula village, Guangxi province, China, can share lessons on sustainable farming with the rest of the world (Photo: Simon Lim)

Nurturing the shoots of China's sustainable agriculture

Blog, Mar 2016
A farmer in a buckwheat field close to harvest time in Gansu Province, China. The country's agriculture is currently facing major environmental challenges (Photo: Han Jianping)

Sustainable agriculture in China: then and now

Blog, Mar 2015
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