Darryl Stellmach

Earth from space (Beth Scupham/Flickr CC BY 2.0)

The role of humanitarian academics in a post-truth world

July 24, 2017

by Robyn Alders, Darryl Stellmach

Darryl Stellmach

Darryl is a Post-Doctoral Scholar in medical anthropology, food and nutrition security. His core research focuses on the anthropology of large-scale medical and nutritional crises, in particular decision-making in emergency: how moral, scientific and bureaucratic reasoning are combined to conceptualize and respond to crisis as it happens.

His 2016 doctoral thesis followed the international aid agency Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in their response to the armed conflict and subsequent nutritional emergency in South Sudan. The research was made possible by Darryl's unusual background; prior to academia he was an emergency relief worker, spending a decade as a field manager with MSF.

At the University of Sydney, Darryl holds cross-appointments with the Charles Perkins Centre, Marie Bashir Institute and the Faculty of Veterinary Science. He works on interdisciplinary initiatives based out of these centres, contributing perspectives on the social and political aspects of epidemics, food security, environmental and nutritional crises as well as experience in field research planning, ethics and methods.