Professor Alana Mann is Head of Discipline, Media, in the School of Creative Arts and Media within the College of Arts, Law and Education. She is an interdisciplinary scholar researching the power relations between media, governments, institutions, and citizens in the field of food politics. International in scope, her research foregrounds communication and social learning as central to food systems transformation. Innovating theory for making sense of these transformations is a strong focus of her work at the critical intersection of food security, global warming, and public health.

Biography

Prior to joining University of Tasmania in 2022 Alana led the Department of Media and Communications at University of Sydney (2017-2021) and was Food Lead Researcher at the Sydney Environment Institute (SEI). She embarked on doctoral research on food sovereignty campaigns in Latin America and Europe in 2007 after a career in media and marketing - including seven years at Fairfax Media, publisher of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Alana has worked with the Food First Information and Action Network (FIAN International) in Heidelberg, Germany, conducted fieldwork at the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in Rome and Geneva, and served on the committee to appoint an Australasian representative to the Civil Society Mechanism (CSM) of the UN World Committee for Food Security (WCFS) in 2017. She was a member of the executive committee of the Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance (2015 - 2017), contributing to advocacy on issues ranging from threats to peri-urban agriculture by urban rezoning and fair farm-gate prices. She continues to work closely with farmers, eaters, and their communities in her research to understand how people-centred, participatory communication approaches can contribute to the development of resilient and sustainable food supply networks.

Career summary

Qualifications

• PhD, University of Sydney, 2012. Framing Food Sovereignty: A Study of Social Movement Communication
• Graduate Certificate in Educational Studies (Higher Education), University of Sydney , 2012
• Master of Media Practice, University of Sydney, 2005
• Diploma of Education, University of Queensland, 1990
• Bachelor of Arts (with Distinction), University of Central Queensland, 1989

Languages (other than English)

Spanish

Memberships

Professional practice

Board of Directors – FoodLab Sydney

Red Cross International Humanitarian Law Advisory Committee Member - Media/Public Affairs, Tasmania

Member:

• Australia New Zealand Communication Association (ANZCA)
• International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR)
• International Communication Association (ICA)
• The Australasian Agri-Food Research Network
• International Sociological Association (ISA)
• International Federation of University Women (IFUW)
• Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance

Administrative expertise

Alana led the Department of Media and Communications at the University of Sydney (2017-21) and served on committees such as the Student Experience Transformation project and Culture Strategy. As key academic in Global Engagement and recruitment activities she has cultivated relationships in cities including Beijing, Shanghai, New Delhi, Mumbai, Singapore, Jakarta and Hong Kong.

Teaching

Teaching expertise

Alana’s teaching expertise ranges from first year introductory media theory to post-graduate and higher degree research supervisions in political communication. Her teaching is research-led, and aligns strongly with her personal philosophy and interest in social learning processes. Alana has designed, delivered, and directed courses and degrees including the University of Sydney’s BA (Media and Communications) where her focus was the first-year experience, deliberately developing a curriculum and culture that supports all students in the transition from secondary school to university. She is currently teaching HEJ130 Global Media Industries and HEJ510 Public Relations.

Research Appointments

• Recipient of a Harvard Mobility Scholarship and Visiting Scholar at Harvard Food Law and Policy Clinic, Boston, 2018
• Visiting Professorship, Cornell University, Department of Development Sociology, Ithaca, 2018

Research Invitations

• Keynote at the “Food in the Capital” industry summit hosted by Regional Development Australia (RDA) (Canberra, 2020).
• Panellist role at the Australian Dairy Summit (Melbourne, 2021).
• University of Sydney representative on the City of Sydney Food Relief Collaboration.
• Featured speaker, City University, London, Food Thinkers Series (2021)
• Featured speaker at the Slow Food International 24-hour Climate Conference (2021).
• Featured speaker at the George Institute webinar “Transforming Food System: Effective policies to build a sustainable future” (October 20, 2021).
• Keynote at the Nutrition Society of Australia National Conference (December 2, 2021)
• Keynote at The Future of World Food Systems – Challenges and Opportunities for the Monash Food Security Group, Monash University, June 19, 2017.

Media and Public Events

• Food Thinkers: Food in a Changing Climate (Thursday, 20th May 2021) - City, University of London
  In her talk Alana Mann discusses the ecological and economic legacies of colonialism in our food systems, and promote the value of diverse food cultures as sources of resistance and resilience. www.city.ac.uk.
• Curator and presenter of Food@Sydney lecture series, over 30 events (2016- 2018).
• Appearance on SBS Dateline program “Apples and Oranges: Pandemic Farming” (2020).
• ABC Radio National on grocery “dead zones” (2020).
• ABC Radio National on Australia's progress towards the SDGs (2019).
• Host of Sydney’s Pocket City Farm Farm Talks series (2019).
• Panellist on Outside the Square “Will Veganism Save the Planet?” (2019).
• Monolog “Come Grocery Shopping with Me”, Raising the Bar (2017).