I am a historian intrigued by the intersections of global environmental, modern European colonial, and African history. My research focuses on colonial ecologies – the study of how colonial power shapes and transforms ecosystems, and vice versa. Geographically, my work centers on Southern Africa, specifically Namibia. My most recent monograph, Environing Empire: Nature, Infrastructure, and the Making of German Southwest Africa (2022, available in open access), employs the concept of “environmental infrastructure” (Emmanuel Kreike) to better understand the making of Germany’s first and only settler colony. Through that work, I also question narratives of transformation and development that continue to haunt the historical scholarship and public debates.