What are you currently working on?

I am now currently examining mobile telephony and e-waste management in Kenya, focusing on phone repair shops. Here I argue that, Mobile telephony contributes to development, inclusion, communication, and economic participation, yet the same technology can generate environmental and public health vulnerabilities when disposal systems are weak. In this work I ask ‘"What happens to societies when mobile technologies reach the end of their life cycle?"

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My hope here is to contribute to scholarship, by highlighting the phone repair shops as often neglected ecosystem yet these actors occupy a neglected yet strategic position within the mobile phone ecosystem.

They are:

• Extending the lifespan of devices through repair.

• Facilitating informal reuse and recycling practices.

• Acting as gatekeepers between consumption and disposal.

• Managing e-waste often without adequate policy guidance or environmental safeguards.
   

I do intend to shift attention from consumers and manufacturers to an often-overlooked group whose practices significantly influence the flow of electronic waste. I also suggest in this work that:

• Digital transformation must be environmentally sustainable.

• Technological inclusion must consider end-of-life device management.

• Communication interventions are needed to raise awareness about e-waste risks.

• Communities need knowledge, not just access to technology.

 

Can you share a project that changed the way you think or work? 

My research on mobile money, particularly M-Pesa and its evolution in Kenya, fundamentally changed how I think about communication technologies. Initially, I viewed mobile technologies largely as communication tools. However, studying M-Pesa revealed that technology can become social infrastructure, transforming economic participation, social relationships, trust systems, and development opportunities. It taught me that communication technologies do not simply transmit information; they reconfigure social life itself.

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Which piece of work feels closest to your heart, and why?

My work examining communication for social transformation holds a special place in my heart because it aligns scholarship with lived realities. Whether exploring health communication, digital inclusion, or community development, I am driven by the belief that communication should ultimately improve people's lives. Research becomes most meaningful to me when it amplifies local voices, supports vulnerable communities, and contributes to practical solutions for societal challenges. 

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What's a question you keep returning to?

I continually return to the question: How can communication technologies be designed, appropriated, and governed in ways that genuinely empower people rather than deepen existing inequalities?

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As digital technologies become more embedded in everyday life, this question becomes increasingly important for scholars concerned with development, justice, and social transformation.

 

If you had a tagline or motto, what would it be? 

"Communication for empowerment, technology for transformation."

Or perhaps:

"Listening deeply, connecting meaningfully, transforming communities."

Both capture my belief that meaningful social change begins with inclusive communication processes that place people at the center of technological and developmental innovation.

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If time, money, and logistics weren't a concern, what dream project would you dive into?

I would establish a Pan-African Mobile Communication and Social Innovation Observatory that tracks, documents, and analyzes how digital technologies shape everyday life across diverse African communities. The project would bring together scholars, policymakers, practitioners, and community members to co-create evidence-based solutions in areas such as health, education, financial inclusion, governance, and youth empowerment. Ultimately, I would want the project to generate African-centered theories of communication and technology grounded in lived experiences rather than imported assumptions.

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What's one thing you wish someone had told you when you were starting out as a scholar? 

I wish someone had told me that finding your scholarly voice is more important than trying to fit into dominant academic conversations.

Early in my journey, I sometimes felt pressure to follow established paths. Over time, I learned that some of the most valuable contributions emerge when scholars embrace the questions that genuinely matter to their communities. Scholarship gains significance when it remains rooted in authenticity, curiosity, and purpose.

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What is a book or paper that shaped the way you think about the world?

One work that has deeply influenced my thinking is Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Freire's emphasis on dialogue, participation, critical consciousness, and empowerment continues to shape how I understand communication and social change. His work reminds us that development is not something done for people but something created with people through meaningful engagement and collective agency.

I have also been influenced by scholarship in communication for social change that views communication not merely as message transmission but as a participatory process through which communities negotiate meaning and pursue transformation

 

Who's someone whose work deserves more attention - and who you want to nominate as the next featured scholar? 

I would nominate Jordan Frith. He has commendable work in infrastructure and how that has a bearing on the use of mobile telephony in South Africa and Kenya alongside other sites.