| Susanna B. Hecht | |
|---|---|
| Name | Susanna B. Hecht |
| Birth date | 1947 |
| Nationality | American |
| Fields | Political ecology, Environmental history, Land use change |
| Workplaces | University of California, Los Angeles; University of California, Berkeley; University of São Paulo |
| Alma mater | Swarthmore College; University of California, Berkeley; Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Susanna B. Hecht is an American political ecologist and geographer known for influential work on tropical deforestation, land use change, and environmental policy in Brazil and Latin America. Her scholarship integrates field research, remote sensing, historical analysis, and interdisciplinary collaboration to address issues at the intersection of conservation, development, and social justice. Hecht has held academic appointments in major universities and has authored and edited several seminal books and articles that shaped debates among scholars, policymakers, and conservation organizations.
Hecht was born in the United States and completed undergraduate studies at Swarthmore College before undertaking graduate research at University of California, Berkeley and doctoral work associated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. During formative training she studied alongside scholars influenced by intellectual traditions from Harvard University, University of Chicago, and Yale University. Her early fieldwork drew on methodologies used by researchers connected to Smithsonian Institution projects and collaborations with Brazilian institutions such as the University of São Paulo and the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia.
Hecht has held faculty and visiting appointments at University of California, Los Angeles and University of California, Berkeley, and has been affiliated with research centers including the Center for Latin American Studies and the Institute of Brazilian Studies. She has worked in partnership with scholars from Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, State University of Campinas, and National Autonomous University of Mexico. Her career includes collaborations with international organizations such as the World Bank, United Nations Environment Programme, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, as well as fellowships from foundations like the Ford Foundation and the MacArthur Foundation.
Hecht’s research reframed narratives about tropical forests by challenging simplistic assumptions advanced in debates involving actors such as the World Wildlife Fund, Conservation International, Greenpeace, and national governments in Brazil and other Amazonian states. She integrated satellite-based analyses related to Landsat and thematic work influenced by scholars at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and Jet Propulsion Laboratory with archival research linked to collections at the Library of Congress and the British Library. Her work engaged questions central to discussions at forums like the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and influenced research programs at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and the Carnegie Institution for Science.
Hecht advanced concepts used by economists and political scientists working at institutions such as Stanford University, Princeton University, and Columbia University to rethink drivers of deforestation, including land tenure regimes studied by comparativists at the London School of Economics and property scholars from New York University. She highlighted the role of rural social movements connected to organizations such as the Landless Workers' Movement and municipal actors observed in case studies from Manaus, Porto Velho, and Belém.
Hecht is author or editor of major works cited across literatures in environmental history and political ecology. Her books and edited volumes have been discussed in venues associated with Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, and University of California Press. Her scholarship appears alongside contributions by scholars from Duke University Press and essays in journals linked to editorial boards at Nature, Science, Annals of the Association of American Geographers, and the Journal of Latin American Studies. Her monographs and edited collections have informed research agendas at the International Center for Tropical Agriculture and policy briefs circulated to the Inter-American Development Bank.
Hecht’s work has been recognized by awards and fellowships from organizations including the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Science Foundation, and academic prizes associated with American Association of Geographers and the Latin American Studies Association. Her distinctions reflect interdisciplinary engagement with institutions like the Rockefeller Foundation, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and scholarly societies at University College London and École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales.
Hecht has advised governmental and non-governmental actors in Brazil and internationally, contributing to dialogues that included representatives from the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Brazil), and delegations to meetings of the Conference of the Parties. She has participated in panels convened by the World Resources Institute, testified before legislative and executive bodies, and collaborated with NGOs such as Fondation pour la Nature-type groups and networks connected to Amazon Fund stakeholders. Her work influenced policy discussions on land use, tenure reform, and conservation finance processes involving the Global Environment Facility and carbon initiatives linked to REDD+.
Category:American geographers Category:Political ecologists Category:Environmental historians