Andrew Smolski, PhD

Bio

Andrew R. Smolski specializes in the sociology of agriculture and food systems. His current research focuses on how farmers frame the risk factors for farm stress, barriers to care, and strategies to navigate farm stress and economic hardship. In his role as Applied Research Director for the Souther Ag Exchange Network, he is managing editor of the Farm Stress Brief Series and coordinates the SAgE Applied Research Webinar Series. He is working on a project with NC Choices to understand how access to different community capitals enable livelihood strategies by niche farmers in North Carolina. Also, he is currently co-editing a thematic issue of Latin American Perspectives on the agrarian question as an ecological question with colleagues in Chile and Brazil. He has completed research on the role of social structures and institutions in conditioning agrarian practices, the development of alternative food distribution systems, and how policy can support farm and food security.

Programs and Initiatives

• Southern Ag Exchange Network

Primary Teaching Responsibilities

• SOC 202: Principles of Sociology
• SOC 400: Theories of Social Structure

Contributing Websites

• https://families.ces.ncsu.edu/ (in-process)

Professional Honors/Offices/Recognitions

• 2019 – Honorable Mention, Political Economy of the World-System’s Terence K. Hopkins Student Paper Award
• 2019 – North Carolina State University Graduate Student Association Excellence in Classroom Teaching Award
• 2013 – Illinois State University/American Sociological Association Distinguished Sociology Graduate Student Award

Selected Publications

• Smolski, Andrew R., Rebecca Shisler, Abbey E. Piner, Angel Cruz, and Emma Brinkmeyer. (2023). Applied Social Science as Tools for Change. TRAILS: Teaching Resources and Innovations Library for Sociology, September. Washington DC: American Sociological Association. https://trails.asanet.org/article/view/applied-social-science-as-tools
• Smolski, Andrew R., Abbey E. Piner, Angel Cruz, Rebecca Shisler, and Emma Brinkmeyer. (2023). Systemic Racism and the Food System. TRAILS: Teaching Resources and Innovations Library for Sociology, September. Washington DC: American Sociological Association. https://trails.asanet.org/article/view/systemic-racism-and-the-food
• Smolski, Andrew R., Michael D. Schulman, Robin Tutor-Marcom, and Diamond Bynum. (2022). Farmers’ Perceptions of Information and Resources for Navigating Economic Hardship and Stress. Rural Advancement Foundation International, USA. https://attra.ncat.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Farmer-Well-Being-Report-RAFI.pdf.
• Smolski, Andrew R. (2022) Interrogating Structural Conditions for Agricultural Production: A Comparative-Historical Study of Cuban Incorporation, Delinking and Exile. Journal of World-Systems Research, 28(2): 360-390.
• *Clark, Timothy P., *Andrew R. Smolski, Jason S. Allen, Heather Sanchez, and John Hedlund. (2022). Capitalism and Sustainability: An Exploratory Content Analysis of Frameworks in Environmental Political Economy. Social Currents, 9(2): 159-179. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/23294965211043548
• Smolski, Andrew R., Jacob C. Rutz, and Francesco Tiezzi. (2022). SNAP into Justice. Contexts, 21(4): 80-83. https://doi.org/10.1177/15365042221131090
• Zuckerman, Jennifer, Abbey Piner, Jack Daly, Andrew R. Smolski, Jamilla Hawkins, Tiera George, Erin Van Fleet, Andrea Padilla Guerrero, Robyn Stout, Tessa Thraves, Josie Walker, Janie Hynson, Gizem Templeton, Ali Conrad, Nicole, Lococo, Sara Darwish, Elizabeth Towell, and Deborah Hill. (2021). North Carolina Food System Resiliency Strategy. Center for Environmental Farming Systems and Duke World Food Policy Center. https://wfpc.sanford.duke.edu/reports/north-carolina-food-system-resilience-strategy.
• Garzon, Lariza and Andrew R. Smolski. (2020). Episcopal Farmworker Ministry and disaster response to COVID-19. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, 9(4): 191-196. https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2020.094.002.
• Smolski, Andrew R. (2019). Stemming the Exploitation of Immigrant Farm Labor. Contexts, 18(2):70-71. https://doi.org/10.1177/1536504219854727.

Area(s) of Expertise

• Rural Sociology
• Farm Stress
• Food Systems
• Qualitative Methods
• Community-Engaged Research