Alex O. Awiti is Vice Provost at Aga Khan University. Before assuming the role of Vice Provost, Awiti was the Founding Director of the East Africa Institute of Aga Khan University.

Awiti is an interdisciplinary scholar, whose research intersects agriculture, ecology, education, climate and society, health policy and the economy., including the International Policy Digest and The Conversation. He is a regular and commentator on public policy issues on news networks in East Africa and international media such as CNBC, CGTN, Bloomberg News and Al Jazeera TV.  Prior to joining the Aga Khan University, Awiti was a postdoctoral fellow at the Earth Institute at Columbia University in the City of New York. He was also an adjunct assistant professor at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs.

Awiti was a scientist at the World Agroforestry Centre in Nairobi for 9 years where with colleagues he pioneered the application of infrared spectroscopy for diagnostic surveillance of soil quality at the farm and landscape scale. Awiti is an alumnus of the CSC Leaders program, a global leadership program for exceptional leaders from the Commonwealth, run in partnership with the Duke of Edinburgh’s Commonwealth Study Conference. He is also an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Geography and Environment at University of the Fraser Valley in BC, Canada. He is an Associate Professor and holds a PhD in Ecosystems Ecology.