Amara Ifeji

Gendered climate necropolitics: An African feminist political ecological analysis of lithium mining in Zimbabwe

Amara is a National Geographic Explorer, decolonial feminist political ecologist, and political geographer whose research examines the interconnections among extractivism, environmental justice, and gender justice amid the global energy transition.

Her doctoral research examines lithium mining in Zimbabwe, ethnographically exploring the lived experiences of women in mining-impacted communities. She examines the relationships women have with extractivism, particularly the affective, embodied, and productive violence that lithium mining inflicts on them. Beyond documenting these gendered geographies of violence, her project uncovers the daily practices of resistance these women employ to fight extractivism. As procurement of lithium and other critical minerals proliferates globally to meet the energy transition, her research seeks to address the largely neglected forms of harm that global climate change strategies based on green extractivism entail. In unearthing these forms of violence, her research ultimately focuses on envisioning just futures in the Anthropocene and on exploring alternatives to growth-driven extractivism.

Prior to the DPhil, Amara completed an MSc in Nature, Society and Environmental Governance at the University of Oxford and a BA (with Honors) in Political Science at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. During and after her BA, Amara served as the Director of Policy at the Maine Environmental Education Association. During this period, she developed a theory of change at the intersection of grassroots organizing, policy advocacy, and research by advancing state and federal climate and environmental justice legislation, including mobilizing a youth-led movement that secured a historic $2 million legislative investment to advance climate justice education in Maine. Amara’s policy experience is complemented by her service in philanthropy as a board member of the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation and in government, serving as a governor-appointed Youth Representative and Equity Subcommittee member of the Maine Climate Council.

Awards and Honors

• Associate Fellow, Royal Geographic Society, 2025
• Young, Gifted, and Green 40 Under 40, 2025 (national honor of leaders of color advancing environmental equity)
• Marshall Scholar, 2024
• Harry S. Truman Scholar, 2023
• Morris K. and Stewart L. Udall Scholar, 2023
• GRIST 50 Fixer in Policy and Advocacy, 2022 (recognition for national leaders in sustainability and equity)
• Brower Youth Award, Earth Island Institute, 2022 (prize for nation’s foremost youth environmental leaders)
• National Geographic Young Explorer, 2021

• Academic Article: “Gendered Climate Necropolitics: An African Feminist Political Ecological Analysis of Lithium Mining in Zimbabwe,” African Geographical Review (Forthcoming 2026)
• Book Chapter Contribution: Climate Change Education Across Disciplines K-12: New Jersey and Beyond (February 2025)
• Magazine Article: “Environmental Education: A Catalyst for Youth-Led, Climate Justice Solutions,” Nonprofit Quarterly Magazine (November 2024)

Selected Conference and Keynote Presentations

• “State-Sanctioned Starvation and Women's Labors of Love: A Gendered Analysis of the Economic Blockade against the Republic of Biafra (1967-1970)” Conference presentation delivered at the Canadian Association of African Studies Conference. Toronto, Canada. June 2025.
• “Catalyzing Change: A Fireside Chat on Gender, Climate, and Collective Action with Michael Nyenhuis and Amara Ifeji” Invited presentation in collaboration with National Geographic and UNICEF at the Global Youth Economic Opportunities Summit (GYEO) hosted by Making Cents International. Washington, DC. September 2024.
• “Gen Z Climate Leadership” Panel discussion hosted during Harvard Climate Action Week. Cambridge, MA. June 2024.
• “State Sanctioned Starvation: An Environmental Justice and Ecowomanist Analysis of the Nigeria-Biafra War (1967-1970)” Conference presentation delivered at American Philosophical Association Annual Meeting. New Orleans, LA. February 2024.
• “Storytelling For Social Change.” Keynote delivered at Bioneers Annual Conference. Berkeley, CA. April 2023.
• “Girls on Fire II: Allies, Activists and Holy Agitators on Climate Justice and Gender-Based Violence.” Panel discussion hosted by Ecumenical Women at the United Nations. Virtual. March 2022.
• “Building Alliances with Climate Activists to Support Climate Action and Ecological Knowledge.” Talk presented at Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting. Virtual. August 2021.
• “Fire Drill Friday: Earth Day Youth Show with Amara Ifeji and Sirosh Subash.” Hosted by Jane Fonda and Greenpeace USA. Virtual. April 2021.