Dr Steffen Hirth

Profile

In 2019, I obtained a PhD in Sociology at the University of Manchester, UK, with a studentship awarded by the Sustainable Consumption Institute (SCI). My background is in Human Geography and I hold a degree as Dipl.-Geogr. (MSc equivalent) in Social and Economic Geography from the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Germany, where I also had Media and Communication studies and Cultural Anthropology as minor subjects. I have spent a year at the Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3, France, as part of the Erasmus programme.

Research interests

Currently, I work as a researcher in the H3 consortium, which is a project funded by the UKRI Strategic Priorities Fund that seeks to transform the UK food system towards Healthy Soil, Healthy Food, and Healthy People (H3). In WP6, we focus on food system resilience in supply chains to economic, health and environmental shocks through collaborative research with retailers and consumers.

My general research interest is centred on (un)sustainabilities of food systems against the background of social-ecological crises. My doctoral thesis examined the boundary-drawing practices that shape vegan and carnist food production and consumption, with a focus on stockfree organic agriculture. I have also examined food and packaging waste in the on-the-go food sector as well as ecological and cultural ecosystem services provided by woodland-based food systems. My theoretical focus is on relational theory, including practice and materialist approaches.

Research groups and institutes

• Sustainability Research Institute