Research Projects
Gaming Ecosystems in Kenya
My research investigates how digital gaming cultures are emerging and evolving across urban Kenya, focusing on the intersections of technology, youth culture, and economic aspiration. Through ethnographic fieldwork, I examine how gaming spaces — from cybercafés to mobile platforms — become sites of community building, identity formation, and creative labor.
This work interrogates the global circulation of gaming technologies and how they are localized, adapted, and reimagined within Kenyan contexts. I am particularly interested in how gamers navigate tensions between global gaming cultures and local social realities, and what these navigations reveal about contemporary African digital life.
Ethnographic Methods
Drawing on participant observation, in-depth interviews, and digital ethnography, my methodology is rooted in long-term engagement with gaming communities. I spend extended periods within gaming spaces, building relationships and understanding the everyday practices that constitute gaming culture from the inside out.
My approach combines traditional anthropological methods with attention to digital platforms and online communities, recognizing that contemporary gaming cultures operate across both physical and virtual spaces. This multi-sited approach allows me to trace connections between local gaming practices and broader global networks.
Contributions to the Field
This research contributes to growing conversations in the anthropology of digital media, African studies, and game studies by centering African perspectives and experiences. By documenting and analyzing Kenyan gaming ecosystems, I aim to challenge narratives that position Africa as peripheral to global digital cultures and instead highlight the continent's active role in shaping these landscapes.