Marianne Nylandsted Larsen

Short presentation

My research revolves around agrarian transformation in developing countries, linkages and mechanisms of translation between what could be called 'global' or 'macro' trends and the implications for socio-economic dynamics in rural areas in developing countries. The key research interests are within the fields of global value chains (GVCs) and rural development and cover research on the role of food safety, quality, ethical, and environmental standards on rural transformation and inclusion and exclusion patterns in developing countries; the broader institutional environments in which value chains operate and how these regulatory mechanisms shape the geography and configuration of GVCs in the global economy; rural-urban transformation and development of businesses in emerging urban centres in rural regions; smallholder contract farming and impacts on livelihoods. My regional specialisation is Eastern and Southern Africa (Zimbabwe and Tanzania) and West Africa (Ghana, Benin) and Southeast Asia (Indian, Thailand, Vietnam).

CV

Place of work

University of Copenhagen
Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management

Section for Geography
Øster Voldgade 10
DK - 1350 København K
Phone: +45 3532 4167 (direct), 3532 2500 (switch board)
Fax: 3532 2501
E-mail: [email protected]

Scientific focus

- Agro-industrial restructuring rural transformation in developing countries

- Multi-scalar dimensions of tranditional and modern food value chain transformations

- Governance and upgrading in global value chains (GVCs) and impact on socio-economic dynamics in rural areas

- Food safety and quality standards in agro-food GVCs, corporate social responsibility

- Smallholder contract farming and impacts on livelihoods and local economic development

- Rural-urban dynamics and development of businesses in emerging urban centres in rural regions  

- Socio-economic drivers of plastic pollution in the global South

Regional specialization: Eastern and Southern Africa (Zimbabwe and Tanzania), West Africa (Ghana and Benin) and Asia (India, Thailand, Vietnam).

Education

2006   Diploma, Higher Education Teaching and Teaching Practice, Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen

2004    Ph.D. Geography, University of Copenhagen (UoC)

1998    Master of Science, Geography, Institute of Geography (UoC)

1994    Bachelor of Science, Geography, Institute of Geography (UoC)

Positions

2011- Associate professor at the Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management

2013-2016 Head of Studies for the MSc and BSc study programmes in Geography and Geoinformatics

2005-2010 Assistant professor at the Department of Geography and Geology (UoC)

2004-2005 Teaching assistant, Department of Geography and Geology (UoC)

2001-2002 Amanuensis, Department of Geography (UoC)

Research projects

2018-2020: 'Sustainable supply chain for bio-based products - using blockchain technology to accelerate sustainability, transparency and traceability in bio-based value chains'. Institutional-PI, funded by COWI Foundation.

2018-2020: 'Plastic debris hotspots: sociental and physical drivers of massive plastic pollution' (PlasticHotspot'). Leading the research component on political and socio-economic background for plastic release in the environment. Funded by Geocenter grant.

2017-2020: 'Beyond the 'Supermarket Revolution Myopia' - Traditional Markets and Sustainable Upgrading Opportunities in Domestic Food Value Chains. PI, funded by the Danish Council for Independent Research, Social Sciences.

2015-2020: ‘Organic Cotton for Employment, Growth and Environment?’ Institutional-PI. Leading the fieldwork component on value chains of a work package focusing on farm households, value chain, and institutions. The Danish Council for Development Research (http://ifro.ku.dk/english/research/projects/projects_production/scopa/).

2014-2019: Extension project ‘Rural-Urban Transformation (RUT): Governance, Mobility, and Economic Dynamics in Emerging Urban Centres for Poverty Reduction’. The Danish Council for Development Research. Leading the research component on business and business networks development in rural Tanzania (http://ign.ku.dk/rut/)

2014-2019: Extension project ‘Enhancing Productivity, Market Access and Incomes for Small Farming Business in Tanzania’ (POLICOFA II). The Danish Council for Development Research. Leading the research component on global market dynamics and impact on local economic development (http://policofa.mzumbe.ac.tz).

2013-2015: ‘Contract Farming and Gender Equity in African Landscapes’. ESRC-DFID Development Frontiers Research Fund 2012/13. Work package leader, Tanzania.

2011-2014: ‘Rural-Urban Complementarities for the Reduction of Poverty: Identifying the Contribution of Savings and Credit Facilities’ (RUCROP). The Danish Council for Development Research.

2011-2014: ‘Enhancing Productivity, Market Access and Incomes for Small Farming Business in Tanzania: Potentials and Limitations in Contract Farming’ (POLICOFA I). The Danish Council for Development Research.

2006-2010: ‘Food safety and Quality Standards in Agro-food Value Chains: Challenges and consequences for Developing Countries. The Danish Social Science Research Council (PI, 2-years Post doc project).

2008: ‘Sustainability, Standards and Socioeconomic Aspects of Food Supply Chains – Vietnam’ – University of Copenhagen, ‘Seed money, Temaklynge 1’).

1999-2003: ‘Governing Post-liberalised Markets: National Market Coordination and the Global Cotton Chain’. The Danish Social Science Research Council (PhD project).

PhD students

Eliza J. Villarino (2018-2021: 'The role of institutions in cacao value chain upgrading in Caquetá, Colombia'. Department of Geociences and Natural Resource Management (Denmark).

Sinne Broby Ørtenblad (2017-2020) 'Investigation of food value chain transformations in domestic markets in Thailand and socio-economic implications of upgrading'. Department of Geociences and Natural Resource Management (Denmark).

Stephen Aniseth Nyaki (2015-2019) 'Business, business networks and employment in Ilula and Madizini emerging urban centres' (double degree) Sokoine University of Agriculture (Tanzania), Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management (Denmark).

Edward Bahati Makoye (2015-2019) 'Global value chains and local economic development: tobacco farmers under contract farming in Tanzania' (double degree), Mzumbe University (Tanzania), Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management (Denmark).

Poul Maganga Nsimbila (2011-2014) 'The role of contract farming on productivity of smallholder cotton producers in Bunda district and effects on the cotton value chain in Tanzania' (co-supervisor), Mzumbe University (Tanzania).

Bahati Ilembo (2011-2014) 'Contract farming and the dynamics of the tobacco value chain in Tanzania' (co-supervisor), Mzumbe University (Tanzania).

PhD courses

'Global Value Chains and Regional Development', IGN, Copenhagen, 29 June - 3 July 2015, in collaboration with Niels Fold.

'Agribusiness Value Chains in a Methodological Perspective', Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania, 3-6 June 2013, in collaboration with Niels Fold.

Teaching and supervision

Broad university teaching skills and experiences covering lectures, class and seminar teaching; preparing semester/block plans, curriculums, detailed course homepages, teaching materials (e.g. notes, power point presentations, overheads) and devising, executing, and grading student work on economic and social geographic issues in developing countries at both the undergraduate and graduate level. Undergraduate courses: Introduction to problem oriented projects; the geography of the international division of labour; Globalisation and spatial change; Globalisation and local development. Graduate courses: Globalisation and industrial restructuring in developing countries; Globalisation and local restructuring of agricultural production in developing countries; Globalisation and dynamics in global value chains. Methodology and fieldwork courses: Thailand (2002); Tanzania (2008). Supervision (BSc, MSc): Supervision of more than 30 Bachelor Theses and 18 Master Theses (completed).

PhD and senior staff committes

2017 Evaluation of the International Bachelor in Social Sciences, Roskilde University, Denmark.

2016 PhD evaluation: 'Institutional Arrangements in Water Governance and Access in Zambia: the Case of Water Point Committees in Senanga District', Nawa Shalala Mwale, Roskilde University, Denmark.

2013-2016 As Head of Studies for Geography and Geoinformatics (BSc and MSc), member of selection committees for Professorship and Associate professorship at Section for Geography, Deparment of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management.

2012 Member of assessment committte for Assistant professor in Human Geography, Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management.

Commissioned and consultancy work

2014: Short term consultancy for COWI (Tanzania) on the tobacco value chain and grower community program, Tanzania.

2011: Short term consultancy for the World Bank, commissioned sectoral background paper on agribusiness and FDI-related spillovers.

2002-2005: Consultant to DFID financed research project ‘Competition and Coordination’ for the University of London. Team coordination – Zimbabwe.

2003-2004: Consultant to Danida commissioned report ‘Farmer empowerment – lessons learnt and the way forward’ coordinated by the DIIS, Denmark.

2001: Resource person to a French Ministry of Development Cooperation-financed project on the monitoring of changes in West African cotton sectors.

Other professional activities
Referee work carried out by the following journals: Journal of Agrarian Change; African Affairs; Journal of Development Studies; European Journal of Development Studies; Journal of Rural Studies; Annuaire Afrique des Grands Lacs.  

Board member of the Danish Association of Development Researchers (FAU); member (and co-chairman 2007-2009) of the steering committee and co-editor of the bi-annual news letter ‘FAU-news’.

Selected conference contributions and organization of seminars

Panel convenor, 7th European Conference on African Studies (ECAS) 29 June – 1 July 2017, University of Basel, Switzerland, ‘Urban Africa – Urban Africans new encounters of the urban and the rural’. Panel A10 ‘’Urban transformation in Rural Africa: the role of small towns in sub-Saharan Africa – revisited’ (together with Jytte Agergaard Larsen and Torben Birch-Thomsen), 2017.

‘Connecting rural-urban economies? : Emerging urban center dynamics in Tanzania’. Larsen, M. N., Birch-Thomsen, T., Lazaro, E., Makindara, J., Ørtenblad, S. B. Paper presented at 7th European Conference on Africa Studies (ECAS): Urban Africa - Urban Africans new encounters of the urban and the rural, Basel, Switzerland, 2017.

‘The emergence of urban centres: An exploration of the intertwinement of rural transformation and urbanization in Tanzania’. Lazaro, E., Agergaard, J., Larsen, M. N., Makindara, J., Birch-Thomsen, T.Paper presented at 7th European Conference on Africa Studies (ECAS): Urban Africa - Urban Africans new encounters of the urban and the rural, Basel, Switzerland, 2017.

‘Contracts and non-tracts: A fresh look at some obscure issues in the contract farming literature’. Larsen, M. N., Isager, I., Fold, N. Paper presented at the International Conference on Contract Farming in Africa, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, 2-3 October 2014.

‘Formation and implementation of contracts in Tanzania’s cotton sector’. Larsen, M. N.,Nsimbile, P., Kimeme, J. Paper presented at the International Conference on Contract Farming in Africa, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, 2-3 October 2014.

‘The role of credit facilities and investment practices in Igowole and Ilula emerging urban centres, Tanzania’. Paper presented at the RUCROP Stakeholder Workshop, Mikumi, Tanzania, August 2012.

‘Value chain dynamics: a comparative study of tea and sugar dominated emerging urban centres’. Paper presented at the RUCROP Stakeholder Workshop, Mikumi, Tanzania, August 2012

‘Privatization and regional economic dynamics: A comparative study of tea and sugar dominated regions in Tanzania’. Paper presented at the XIII World Congress of Rural Sociology, Lisbon, Portugal, July 2012.

‘Agro-industrial value chain research’. Paper presented at the DDRN Conference Global Value Chains and Sustainable Development, Technical University of Denmark, May 2011, Conference Booklet, p. 34. 

‘The role of quality standards in governing the value chain for tea’. Paper presented at the Association of American Geographers Meeting, Boston (USA), 15-19 April 2008.

‘Restructuring and new linkages in the gold mining sector of Ghana’. Paper presented at the DSA-EADI Workshop, ODI, London, June 2006.