His current interests include Canadian agricultural biotechnology, seed politics, risk studies and Green Criminology. The focus of Wesley’s dissertation Unearthing the power in GMO discourse: An analysis of Canadian agriculture and agrifood debates is the governance of risk and uncertainty in Canadian agricultural biotechnology. This study investigates Canada’s governance of genetically modified crops, examining the extent to which various categories of risk are assessed. Of particular focus is why social, economic and political risks are governed differently than risks related to health and the environment. The purpose of this study is to develop a more holistic and democratic approach to risk vis-à-vis Canadian agricultural biotechnology, and contribute to theoretical literatures on risk and uncertainty.
Wesley received a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts in Criminology from the University of Windsor. His Master’s thesis explores the experiences of farmers and food processors from the Canadian hemp industry, drawing linkages between regulatory constraints and environmental harms.
Wesley is also Managing Editor for Canadian Food Studies, the online journal for the Canadian Association for Food Studies.
Publications
- Tourangeau, W. (2016). Criminology, Food, and Agriculture. In P.B. Thompson and D.M. Kaplan (Eds.) Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics. DOI: 10.1007/978-94-007-6167-4_544-1
- Tourangeau, W. (2015). Re-defining environmental harms: Green criminology and the state of Canada’s hemp industry. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice. 57(4), 528-554. DOI: 10.3138/cjccj.2014.E11
- Tourangeau, W. & Smith, C. (2015). The valorization of GMOs and the de-valorization of farmers’ contributions to biodiversity—Synthesis paper. Canadian Food Studies 2(2), 217-222.