David J. Boyd

University of California, Davis | Associate Professor of Anthropology EmeritusMember since 1969

My Biography

I ‘discovered’ anthropology during a stint in the Peace Corps in Huancavelica, Peru (1964-66), and eventually completed the PhD at UCLA in 1975. My theoretical interests have centered on ecological approaches (human, processual and, currently, political ecology) with long-term research in Papua New Guinea with the Awa (Eastern Highlands, 1970-2013) and the Hagahai (Madang, 1987-91). My major research interest, evident in various publications, concerns the complex process by which previously independent rural cultivators with vibrant exchange-based socioeconomic arrangements respond to colonial domination and engage creatively with the market-driven capitalism of the post-colonial state. My teaching career included Columbia University (1973-77) and UC, Davis (1977-2006).