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The resilience and viability of farmers markets in the United States as an alternative food network: case studies from Michigan during the COVID-19 pandemic

The Intersections of Energy and Housing Justice: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic

Manager and vendor perceptions of farmers’ markets’ impacts on communities: evidence from Michigan

Phillip Warsaw is an Assistant Professor of Ecological Economics and Environmental Justice in the Department of Community Sustainability. Broadly, his research takes an interdisciplinary approach to questions of environmental justice, economic development, and sustainability, combining approaches from economics and the other social sciences, such as the use of critical theory. He holds a PhD in Economics as well as an MS in Environment and Resources from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Prior to joining MSU, Phil was a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Racial Capitalism

Economic Development

Environmental Justice

Sustainability

Michigan State University Profile

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Milwaukee campaign to replace We Energies with municipal utility grows

After the Smoke Clears, When Should Classes Resume?

New grocery store downtown Lansing puts an end to decades long ‘food desert’

Assistant Professor of Ecological Economics and Environmental Justice

Ecological Economics and Agriculture: Alternative Economic Approaches to Achieving Food Sovereignty

The shocks created by the COVID-19 pandemic led to widespread breakdowns in global agricultural supply chains, revealing the fragile nature of our industrialized food system, as well as the deeply embedded inequalities within it. Decades of increased concentration and market specialization among agribusinesses and growers in the name of increased profits resulted in massive food waste, as large- scale farming operations were slow to pivot their production away from wholesale production. This waste occurred at the same time as lines at food banks around the country grew due to an economic downturn brought about by shutdown orders. These impacts were felt most by working class BIPOC families, many of whom already face inadequate food environments, despite that fact that many of them work in ‘essential’ jobs in the production of our food.

These breakdowns have intensified the call for a new economic paradigm, one which centers resilience and equity in local food systems. In this plenary, Dr. Warsaw will discuss the rise of ecological economics, a heterodox field of economics which challenges the default assumptions of external economic growth and centering profit seen in mainstream economic approaches. During this discussion, Dr. Warsaw presents the primary critiques the ecological economists make of ‘business-as-usual’ economics, alternative foundations for an economic system, and real world applications to agricultural systems both in the United States and abroad.

Regenerate 2022 - Phil Warsaw - Ecological Economics and Agriculture Parts 1 &amp; 2

During the 1st public DEI Conversation, Dr. Warsaw spoke about the history of the Environmental Justice Movement, the impact of Redlining and its implications regarding access to green space and offer solutions on what we can do today to address Environmental Injustice. 

Dr. Warsaw is an Assistant Professor of Ecological Economics and Environmental Justice in the Department of Community Sustainability at Michigan State University. His research takes an interdisciplinary approach to questions of environmental justice, economic development, and sustainability, combining approaches from economics and the other social sciences. He holds a PhD in Economics as well as a Masters in Environment and Resources from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

DEI Conversation: Dr. Phillip Warsaw

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