My name is Danielle Jacques and I’m a third-year PhD student in the Sociology department at Brandeis University. I hold a B.A. in Economics from Smith College and a M.A. in Gastronomy from Boston University. I am broadly interested in environmental justice, urban/rural sociology, critical race/whiteness studies, and food systems.

My Master’s Thesis project on rural placemaking, national heritage narratives, and patterns of ethnic erasure in Bulgarian food tourism was funded through a Fulbright Student Research fellowship. Today, my research is focused closer to home on issues relating to land use and environmental justice in both urban and rural contexts. My current work is informed by direct engagement with the communities I am a part of and by my own personal experiences. I grew up on a dairy farm in Maine in a town that has since been found to have some of the highest levels of PFAS contamination in the country. This is where my interest in agriculture, environmental issues, and rural livelihoods began.

I am also passionate about teaching. As the first person in my family to pursue a career in higher education, I am committed to making the classroom a welcoming and accessible place for critical thinking, exploration, collaboration, and student-led learning.

Apart from my work, I enjoy running, climbing, playing my guitar badly, eating cheese (I’m a dairy enthusiast by birth and a cheesemonger by training), and interacting with farm animals. Please feel free to reach out with any questions. I look forward to connecting with you!