Babatunde Olatunji earned a BSc degree in anthropology at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and his MSc degree in environmental anthropology at the same university. Babatunde’s research interests revolve around Indigenous Epistemology on Environmentalism, where he seeks to research the ecological approaches adopted by Indigenous people traditionally towards environmental protection, conservation, and sustainability. His interest further seeks to rationalize, amplify, and advocate for incorporating policies and Indigenous environmentalism approaches effective in tackling “Anthropocene” menaces, including global warming, climate change, environmental pollution, and threats emanated from indiscriminate natural and mineral resource exploitation.

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Babatunde Olatunji also seeks to intellectualize Indigenous people’s rights over native lands through complex socioeconomic and environmental concepts, including ecojustice, capitalism, neoliberalism, global environmental policy-making, and the advocacy, and inclusion of minority expertise.

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Prior to the commencement of his PhD Program in Anthropology at the University of Tennessee Knoxville, he worked with several research organizations; including African Ethnography Services at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and University of Ibadan Research Foundation (UI-RF), where he gathered vast research experiences in ethnographic studies, social experimentation, and demographic surveillance.

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Babatunde is a recipient of the 2023/2024 J. Wallace & Katie Dean Fellowship.

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Chair: Dr. Raja Swamy