About

Bettina Ng'weno is an associate professor and the chair of the Designated Emphasis in African American and African Studies at the University of California, Davis. She is originally from Nairobi, Kenya, and trained as an anthropologist, holding a Ph.D. in Anthropology from Johns Hopkins University and a Master's degree in Anthropology from Stanford University. Her academic work focuses on issues of space, property, social justice, citizenship, cities, states, race, and ethnicity within Latin America, Africa, and the Indian Ocean region. Ng'weno has co-directed the Mellon Research Initiative Reimagining Indian Ocean Worlds at UC Davis, engaging with a diverse group of students and scholars on topics such as place making, oceanographic epistemologies, China’s Belt and Road initiative, and the cultural exchanges associated with material objects. She has contributed to the scholarly discourse through edited volumes like 'Reimagining Indian Ocean Worlds' and 'Developing Global Leaders: Case Studies from Africa,' which explore regional histories, leadership, and the dynamics of African societies amidst rapid demographic changes. Currently, she is working on a book titled 'Nairobi, Growing Old in a New City,' which examines the long-term residents of Nairobi through ethnographic, familial, and archival research, complemented by her creative film project 'Last Dance in Kaloleni.' Her research interests include cultural anthropology, black geographies, space, citizenship, race and ethnicity, rural societies, urban dynamics, and social justice across Latin America, Africa, and the Indian Ocean region.

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