Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Alex Winter-Nelson

Alex Winter Nelson photo

Meet Dr. Alex Winter-Nelson, PhD, Director of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) International Program. After graduating from the University of California at Davis (UCD) with degrees in Economics and International Relations, Dr. Winter-Nelson continued his studies in Applied Economics by pursuing a PhD at Stanford. During his graduate studies, he had the opportunity to conduct field research in Kenya focusing on agricultural policy. These experiences eventually led him to his research at UIUC, where he studies agricultural development to develop interventions and assess food security outcomes in rural poverty settings. He currently travels to Africa every other year for his research. Through the long history of ACES in partnership with Njala University in Sierra Leone, Dr. Winter-Nelson began his relationship with the Global Health Initiative (GHI). He recently taught a course in an online format in the Spring of 2016 about food security in developing countries, where students had the opportunity to analyze historical nutrition intervention strategies to understand the prevalence of undernourishment and observe the role of regional diets. To find out more about Dr. Winter-Nelson’s class, check out https://courses.illinois.edu/search/schedule/2016/spring/ACES/298?sess=.