Why Harvard History Professor Maya Jasanoff Studies the Past to Understand the Present

Key Conversations with Phi Beta Kappa

Growing up, Professor Maya Jasanoff was surrounded by academics and scholars—an environment she believes gave her the confidence to explore academia herself. Initially, her fellowship at Cambridge sparked her interest in studying the British Empire, and as she dove deeper into the subject matter, she began recognizing the many ways that British imperialism has infiltrated our world. Today, the author and professor writes about history and is interested in how people—and power— have historically crossed borders, and how the relationships between power and people shift and align over time.