Lynsey Farrell (GRS '15)
Lynsey Farrell has taken an unusual path by academic standards. Focused on the intersections of youth, livelihoods, informality and urbanization, she completed her ethnographic field research in Nairobi, Kenya while directing the American University’s study abroad program on sustainable development in Kenya. After returning to the United States to write up her dissertation, she joined Ashoka: Innovators for Public, where she led a $6.6 million Mastercard Foundation grant that sourced and supported social entrepreneurs across Africa who were seeking to solve the complex issue of youth unemployment on the continent. Also while at Ashoka, Lynsey honed skills in translating complex knowledge into publications for practical action, such as her innovation guide Youth Unstuck: Innovations for Youth Livelihoods and Leadership and Emerging Insights.
For the last two years, Lynsey has been a Senior Lecturer in Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania and the Africa Director at the Lauder Institute of Management and International Studies.
Lynsey is now embarking on a collaborative research project that challenges the paradigm of work in Africa and just concluded a participatory workshop with academics and practitioners to interrogate what we think we know about labor, livelihoods, work
and the African hustle. Boston University alumni, Marc Sommers, was a featured panelist.