Esther Ngumbi | |
---|---|
Born | |
Alma mater |
Kenyatta University Auburn University |
Scientific career | |
Institutions |
University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign Auburn University |
Esther Ndumi Ngumbi is a Kenyan entomologist and academic who is currently Assistant Professor of Entomology and African-American Studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. She was awarded the 2018 Society for Experimental Biology Presidential Award.
Esther Ngumbi grew up in Kwale County, a rural farming community in Kenya. [1] [2] She was introduced to farming at the age of seven, when her parents gave her a strip of land to cultivate cabbages. [3] As a child she became aware of the challenges that farmers faced, including drought and bad soils. [3] The first time she left her village was to attend Kenyatta University, where she earned her Bachelor's and Master's degrees. [4] [5] In 2007 she was awarded an American Association of University Women (AAUW) International Fellowship that allowed her to complete a doctoral degree in entomology at Auburn University. [1] [6] [7] In 2011 she became one of the first people from her community to achieve a doctorate. [1] [8] After earning her PhD she remained at Auburn University as a postdoctoral scholar. [3]
Ngumbi was appointed Assistant Professor of Entomology and African-American studies and the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign in 2018. [9] She also teaches science communication. [10] She studies the way that herbivores, plants, micro-organisms and insects make use of volatile and non-volatile chemical signals. [9] These include volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that mediate conversations between plants, herbivores and microbes. [9] Ngumbi believes that better urban agriculture can help to combat unhealthy eating. [11] In 2019 Ngumbi delivered the plenary lecture at the British Ecological Society annual meeting. [12]
She was awarded the 2017 Emerging Sustainability Leader Award and Women of Colour Award. [13] [14] In 2018 Ngumbi was awarded the Society for Experimental Biology's President's Medal. [15]
Ngumbi is an active science communicator and has contributed to Mail & Guardian, The Moth, Scientific American and the World Economic Forum. [16] [17] [18] [19] She has appeared on Wisconsin Public Radio. [20] Ngumbi was selected by Barack Obama to be part of the Young African Leadership Initiative. [12] She mentors young researchers through the Clinton Foundation. She has campaigned for girls from rural communities to have better access to education, particularly in science and technology. [4] Working with her family, Ngumbi helped to establish Dr Ndumi Faulu Academy, a school in her hometown that serves over 100 middle school students. [1] [21] [22] in 2021 Ngumbi was awarded the Mani L. Bhaumik Award for Public Engagement with Science by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. [10]
Her publications include: