Braida Thom

I am passionate about using participatory approaches to tackle social-ecological challenges. In my research, I am interested in combining qualitative and quantitative methods and including a human dimension by giving voices to the different actors in the food system.

I graduated in Agricultural Science from ETH Zurich in 2018. In my master’s thesis I evaluated action measures to enhance resilience of Ghanaian cocoa farmers to drought. I then joined the World Food System Center, first as an intern and then as project manager, where I managed the research programs and supported outreach, communication, and educational activities. In parallel, I worked in the Sustainable Agroecosystems Group, where I was responsible for monitoring and evaluating the project "Post-harvest cocoa processing & farmers’ support centers in Côte d’Ivoire”.
In May 2022, I joined the Agroecological Transitions Group as doctoral student. My doctoral project is part of the DELIBERATE project, which aims to understand how the deliberative quality of coffee and soybean value chains is related to power asymmetries and ecological footprints. My research focuses on assessing ecological and social footprints of differently organized coffee value chains in Brazil and the Democratic Republic of Congo, using a participatory approach.

Education
In progress: PhD Environmental Systems Science, ETH Zurich
2018 MSc in Agricultural Science, ETH Zurich
2015 BSc in Agricultural Science, ETH Zurich