Folklore: Folk art & craft, folk medicine, foodways
Emma Bussard is currently an MA student in the Folklore Studies Program at Mason. Her research interests include: folk art and craft, folk medicine/ethnobotany, and foodways.
Emma is also serving as the Editorial Assistant for the Journal of American Folklore, which is currently housed at George Mason University.
In past years, she worked alongside a professor at the University of West Georgia to document and study traditional handicraft and heritage tourism across Malawi in Southeast Africa.
Emma previously worked as the Communication Specialist at Peace Corps Malawi. Prior to that, she served for 12 months as a Peace Corps Response Volunteer in Liberia (2017-18) and for 27 months in Malawi (2014-16).
In her spare time (when it exists), she throws pottery, works in photography, whips up plant-based recipes in her kitchen, and spends time outdoors hiking and running in the mountains by her home.
To contact Emma, send an email to ebussard@gmu.edu
Traditional Craft & Heritage Tourism in Malawi with Dr. Ann McCleary, University of West Georgia (Carrollton, Georgia).
“Liberia National Museum Exhibit Review. ” In The Public Historian, Vol. 41, No. 3, Aug 2019
“Creating a Wood Carving Tradition in Malawi. ” In Makers, Crafters, Educators: Working for Cultural Change, edited by Elizabeth Garber, Lisa Hochtritt, and Manisha Sharma, Routledge, Sep 2018.
“The Mandala: A Comparison of Eastern and Western Views.” In University of North Carolina Asheville, Journal of Undergraduate Research, Spring 2013.
“Path to the Self: Exploring the Relationship between Iconography, Religion, and Identity.” In University of North Carolina Asheville, Journal of Undergraduate Research, Spring 2013.
BS, Health and Wellness Promotions. UNC-Asheville, 2013.
BA, Ceramics. UNC-Asheville, 2013.
“Returning to Malawi: One Year Later.” Peace Corps Malawi website, July 2017.