Meet Daniel Mason-D'Croz, senior research associate for Cornell Global Development's new research group — Food Systems & Global Change. Formerly a Senior Research Scientist and Lead of the Sustainable Food Systems Futures team at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) in Australia, Daniel brings a wealth of expertise in futures thinking and scenario analysis, sustainable and resilient food systems, food security, and innovation and transformation pathways.
Academic background:
- PhD Candidate in Agricultural Economics and Rural Policy, Wageningen University Research
- MA International Development and International Economics, School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), John Hopkins University
- BSBA International Business, Raikes School of Computer Science and Management, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
What research are you currently working on?
I work across a range of projects exploring the potential tradeoffs of interventions in the food system, with a particular focus on tradeoffs between environmental and public health outcomes. This has recently focused on the role of technological innovation and its impacts (positive and negative) on society and the environment, as well as the potential of dietary transitions on the sustainability of food systems.
What most excites you about this opportunity?
My work is highly multi-disciplinary and collaborative. One of the things I enjoy most about this is the opportunity to learn from people with very different perspectives on how the world works. The possibility to collaborate and learn from so many great faculty members as well as the students at Cornell is one of the most exciting aspects of this new opportunity
What does global development mean to you?
More narrowly being a part of the Global Development Department at Cornell means getting to be a part of a great learning institution. This is an honor but also a great responsibility to contribute to the body of knowledge while hopefully supporting the development of future researchers and practitioners in the field.
More broadly Global Development is an area of endeavor that looks to foster systems transformations that lead to greater human well-being and a more environmentally sustainable relationship with the natural world.
Tell us about the most impactful experiences you’ve had as a researcher.
Many of my favorite memories of work are around experiences of getting to engage with policymakers and the policy-informing community. For example, in projects developing participatory regional scenarios of future food systems in Africa, South and Southeast Asia, and Latin America I had the opportunity to engage with a broad range of stakeholders.
We pulled back the curtain a bit and opened the black box of some of our modeling and research methodologies. This allowed us to show policymakers not only the results of modeling efforts but help them to better understand the many assumptions that underly not only the models, but how we understand the past, present and future and ultimately what we consider as “plausible” or “likely” outcomes.
Then getting to use these tools to highlight unexpected connections and help decision-makers systematically question assumptions and engage with uncertainty. The goal of this work was not to convince people of any particular approach or policy, but instead to develop a way of engaging and thinking about the future that hopefully leads to better decision-making. And the most rewarding moment was getting to hear a skeptical harumph followed by a questioning hmmm when I got to see (or hear) the start of a process of more critical questioning.
What do you like to do when you aren’t working?
I am fascinated by learning about different ways of doing things and love to travel and explore new places and cultures. I am an avid hiker and enjoy taking long walks whether I am exploring natural or more man-made environments.
I also enjoy cooking and baking and am usually trying to develop some new skill or technique in the kitchen.
