Loka Ashwood

Loka Ashwood
AwardsMacArthur Fellow (2024)
Academic background
Alma mater
Academic work
DisciplineSociologist
Sub-disciplineRural communities
Institutions
Websitelokaashwood.com

Loka Ashwood (born 1984 or 1985) is an American sociologist currently working at the University of Kentucky as an associate professor of sociology.[1] Her research focuses on rural communities and their issues.[2][3] She is a 2024 MacArthur Fellow.[3][4]

Her first book, For-Profit Democracy, investigated the relationship between rural American communities and the U.S. government through the lens of Burke County, Georgia and the construction of a nuclear power plant there.[3]

Ashwood co-wrote the 2023 book Empty Fields, Empty Promises, which explored right-to-farm laws across the United States.[3] She has criticized right-to-farm laws, saying they have been used by agricultural corporations to limit the efficacy of pollution-focused lawsuits.[5]

  1. ^ "Loka Ashwood". University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  2. ^ Miller, Kerri; Gordon, Kelly (2022-09-19). "The U.S. urban-rural divide is mostly a myth. Here's what's real". MPR News. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  3. ^ a b c d "Loka Ashwood". MacArthur Foundation. 2024-10-01. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  4. ^ Blair, Elizabeth (2024-10-01). "Here's who made the 2024 MacArthur Fellows list". NPR.
  5. ^ Ashwood, Loka; Diamond, Danielle (2019-04-11). "Right-to-Farm laws run counter to rural culture and property rights". EHN. Retrieved 2024-10-02.