Christopher Oliver, Ph.D., joined the Tulane faculty in 2014 as a Professor of Practice jointly appointed in the Department of Sociology and the Environmental Studies program. He was also affiliate faculty in the Urban Studies and City, Culture, and Community program. During his time at Tulane, he taught courses on environment and society, urban sociology, environmental crime and security, science and technology studies, labor sociology, and economic sociology. His research focused on urban development, housing, and environmental policy, management, and regulation. Beginning July 1, 2019, Oliver served as a faculty fellow in Tulane’s Mellon Graduate Program in Community Engaged Scholarship.
As a Social Entrepreneurship Professor, Dr. Oliver applied his interests in innovative approaches to addressing issues of social and environmental justice by incorporating design thinking and various visual and spatial analysis techniques, including mapping, geographic information systems, and photographic and video-based methods for qualitative and quantitative research. He used these tools to further his exploration of the relationship between access to safe, affordable housing and economic opportunity, while advocating for effective policy and regulatory frameworks to protect all communities—particularly communities of color and low-income neighborhoods—from environmental and social injustices.
Oliver earned his Ph.D. in sociology from Michigan State University. He previously taught at Michigan State University, Oregon State University, Kalamazoo College, and the University of Kentucky. He received a B.S. in geography from California Polytechnic State University at Pomona, with a specialization in geographic information science and environmental management. He also completed graduate work in geosciences and resource management at Oregon State University before transferring to Michigan State.
Oliver held the Jill H. and Avram A. Glazer Professorship of Social Entrepreneurship from 2019 to 2024.