Molly’s research aims to better understand the livestock sector as a subsection of the climate change discourse, considering the complexity of overlapping environmental and ethical factors.

The rearing of livestock animals globally is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions, alongside numerous other environmental challenges. The discussion around the solutions to this problem is, however, highly polarised and involves a great degree of nuance. Drawing on concepts from Science and Technology Studies, Molly’s research looks into knowledge construction processes in activist and advocacy groups working in this space. Her research takes a mixed-method approach, focussed on ethnography and social network analysis, to understand the social and discursive processes at work here.

Molly Foster commenced her PhD project at NRI in February 2022.

She previously studied Human Sciences (BA) at St Catherine’s College, University of Oxford, during which time she had particular interest in human ecology and food system transformation and was part of the IFSTAL network. She went on to work as a research assistant for the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, researching corporate investment in the alternative protein sector before joining NRI.