Summer (Austin) Ragosta is an ethnobotanist and Assistant Professor at Maine College of Art & Design. She earned her Doctorate in Botany from the University of Hawai`i at Mānoa. Dr. Ragosta’s research focuses on indigenous medicinal plant use in West Africa (Ghana) and the Caribbean (Jamaica), which she carries out through the non-profit organization, Surfing Medicine International.
She is passionate about place-based education and collaborative field science that allows students and community members to participate in publishable data collection. Dr. Ragosta is also affiliated with the University of California Davis, where she supports educational programs and serves as a consultant for the Center for Plant Diversity herbarium African voucher digitization project. Her favorite way to spend time is outside with her husband and two daughters.
Recent publications include:
- Ragosta, S., D. Potter, B. Heath. IN PRESS. Broadening Student Perceptions of Science through Participatory Data Collection and Research-Education Partnerships: A Case Study in Central Valley California. The American Biology Teacher.
- Ragosta, S., I. Harris, E. Otoo, N. Gyakari, A. Asase. 2015. Ethnomedicinal cancer research with Fante Akan herbalists in rural Ghana. Ethnobiology Letters 6(1):66-79.
- Ragosta, S., I. Harris, L. Harris, L. Henry, K. Campbell. 2012. Historical Influences on the Development of Indigenous Jamaican Maroon Ethnomedicine. Jamaica Journal, 34(1–2): 68–73.
- Austin, S. and Thomas, M.B. (eds.). 2004. Common Medicinal Plants of Portland, Jamaica. Centre for International Ethnomedicinal Education and Research, Gainesville, FL.