JC NIALA

A black woman with long braids smiles at the camera. She wears a black hat and a black and white patterned dress.

Deputy Director and Head of Research, Teaching and Collections

History of Science Museum

Dr JC Niala

jc.niala@hsm.ox.ac.uk

JC's research examines how food and environmental knowledge are produced, standardised, and governed, and how these processes shape future food systems under conditions of ecological and social change. Working across the history of science, anthropology, and environmental humanities, she focuses on the cultural, political, and material dimensions of milk, measurement, and agricultural infrastructures. JC leads interdisciplinary research projects in India, Kenya, and the UK that analyse how food standards, technologies, and institutions influence sustainability, equity, and resilience. She is the author of The New Eden: Wildlife in the City and Discovering Our Shared Home (Gaia, 2026).