Richard Nyiawung

Richard is the Human and Planetary Health Postdoctoral Scholar at the Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions. He is currently part of the teaching team for the policy practicum “Blue Foods for Indonesia: A Human and Planetary Health Action Lab,” which enables senior-level Stanford students to contribute to national policy formulation with government actors and NGO partners. His work focuses on bringing an interdisciplinary social science perspective to understanding blue food systems, fisheries management, gender dynamics, value chains, and social enterprise. 

Originally from Cameroon, Central Africa, Richard was born and raised in the coastal city of Limbe, where coastal and ocean-based livelihoods provide numerous economic opportunities and food security. Through storytelling and people-centered research, he is passionate about actionable policies that promote the inclusion and empowerment of marginalized small-scale actors and their communities. He has been privileged to work with academics, development practitioners, policymakers, and community partners in different community settings in Cameroon, The Gambia, Namibia, Liberia, Ghana, Senegal, Nigeria, Uganda, India, Thailand, the United States, and Canada.

Richard is an interdisciplinary social scientist and human geographer with a PhD in geography and international development studies from the University of Guelph (Canada), a master’s degree in environmental policy from Memorial University of Newfoundland (Canada), and a bachelor’s degree in agriculture from University of Buea (Cameroon). Outside of work, he is a passionate community leader, organizing social and recreational sporting events for children and adults.

Richard's published work is available on ResearchGate.