Karen Foster

Karen Foster is Associate Professor in Dalhousie University’s Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology, where she holds the Canada Research Chair in Sustainable Rural Futures for Atlantic Canada and leads the Rural Futures Research Centre. An expert in social research methodology, she teaches and researches in the areas of rural sociology; work, economy, and development; and poverty and social inequality. Her current research includes studies of rural occupational succession, rural housing and disability, perceptions of climate change in Atlantic Canada, and the global footprint of Nova Scotia’s local food production. She is the author of three books, including Productivity and Prosperity: A Historical Sociology of Productivist Thought. She holds a PhD in sociology from Carleton University.