Monica M. Emerich, Ph.D.
Post-Doctoral Fellow, 2006-2008
Center for Media, Religion and Culture
University of Colorado, Boulder
Education
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO
Ph.D., Media Studies
Spring, 2006
Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
M.Sc., Technical Communications, 1990
Fort Lewis College, Durango, CO
B.A., English; 1977
Dissertation
“The Spirituality of Sustainability: Healing the Self to Heal the World through the Healthy Living Media”
Committee: Stewart Hoover, Janice Peck, Lynn Schofield Clark, Marjorie McIntosh, University of Colorado; Marion Bowman, Open University, UK.
The concept of sustainability is the ligature of multiple discourses in the United States about personal, social and planetary health. Referring to an amalgamation of methods and practices that replenish and nourish rather than extract and deplete the raw materials that comprise and support a human body, a culture, an organism or an ecosystem, sustainability has formed the backbone of “green” politics, generated new conceptualizations of market economics, and operated as a touchstone upon which to base values and lifestyles. This dissertation examines the interlocking roles of media, marketplace and spirituality in the formation of a discourse about sustainability of the self, the social and the natural world occurring in a sector of the U.S. media and economy known as Healthy Living.
Theoretical Interests
Media studies; sociology of religion; critical theory; qualitative methods including ethnography, focus groups, participant observation, interviews and textual analysis; market culture; sustainable living and development; globalization; alternative spiritualities and nature religion; journalism; public relations.
Skills
Magazine (consumer and trade) reporting and editing; newspaper journalism; public relations; economic development and tourism development; marketing communications; qualitative research; grant writing; conference organization.
Publications
Emerich, M. (2006). Alternative Spiritualities: NeoPagan, Wiccan and Paganism on the World Wide Web. Religious Studies Review, 32 (4), 220-221.
Works in Progress:
Media, Markets and Morality: The Mediated Spirituality of Sustainable Living. Book proposal. Under review.
Spiritual Land, Contested Narratives: Spiritual Interpretations of Cornwall’s Landscapes and Implications for Cornish Political Economy. Publication pending in Cornish History Journal; editor, Dr. Garry Tregidga. Submitted for publication to Landscape Narratives, edited volume, Dr. Garry Tregidga, Institute of Cornish Studies, Truro, Cornwall, UK.
Zen Masters, Legacies, and Fair Trade: The Healthy Living Media’s Idea of “Right Livelihood.” Paper in work.
“Wealth, Health And Happiness For All: Feminist Analysis of ‘The Secret.’” Paper submitted to Journal for Alternative Spiritualities and New Age Studies.
“Communities of Change: A Convergence of Media and Spirituality in the LOHAS Marketplace.” Chapter submitted to Ray Browne, editor. Interconnections in Popular Culture. Nov. 2007.
Conference Papers:
Negotiating Ideas about Work and Citizenship in the U.S. through Media and Spirituality. BASR, 2007.
Calling on the God(dess) Within: Wealth, Health and Happiness for All in The Secret.”.BASR, 2007
Spiritualities in the Media Age: A View to the Field of Media, Religion and Culture. Cornwall symposium, Celticity and Identity, Penryn, Cornwall, Sept. 2007.
Building Communities for Conscious Capitalism Through LOHAS Media. Presentation for the International Communication Association, May, 2007.
Wealth, Health and Happiness for All: A Feminist Analysis of Happiness and Success in ‘What The #$*! Do We Know!’ A paper presented at the International Communication Association, May 2007.
Awaken, Empower, Take Action!: Evolving the New Age as Healthy Living. Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, Oct. 19-21, 2006.
Media, Morality and the Marketplace: The Construction of a “Spirituality of Sustainability” in U.S. Healthy Living Media. British Association for the Study of Religions, Sept 4-6, 2006.
Seeking “Right Livelihood” in the Media Age: An Exploration of the Intersection of Spirituality, Media and Vocation among U.S. Workers. Co-Authored with Stewart Hoover. British Association for the Study of Religions, Sept 4-6, 2006.
No More New Age; No Tired Tripartite”: How the US Healthy Living Media is Evolving the New Age to a “Spirituality of Sustainability.” Presented at the Fifth International Conference on Media, Religion, and Culture, Sigtuna, Sweden. July 6-9, 2006.
Religion, Identity, Work and Vocation. Panel presentation for Fifth International Conference on Media, Religion, and Culture, Sigtuna, Sweden. July 6-9, 2006.
Ethics, Ethnography and the Academy: Reflections on the Student-Professor Research Relationship. Presented at the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, Rochester, NY. Nov. 4, 2005
Men, Media, and Identity: Constructions of Meaning in Career and Relationships. Stewart M. Hoover, and Monica Emerich, University of Colorado, USA. Presented at the International Communications Association, New York, NY. May 2005.
Quilting Identities: Threading the Researcher Self with the Informant Other in the Construction of Interpretations. Co-authored with Dr. Lynn Schofield Clark. Presented Feb. 11, 2005, Couch-Stone Symbolic Interactionist Conference, University of Colorado.
Tele-Visions of a ‘Good Life’: How Individuals Use Television for Moral Reflections on Self and Society. Co-authored with Dr. Stewart Hoover. Presented at Media, Religion and Culture, Sept.1-4, 2004, Louisville, KY.
The Moral and Economic Profits of ‘Sustainable Spirituality’: A Case Study of Natural Business Communications and the ‘LOHAS’ Model for Social Change. Presented at International Communication Association, May 28-31, 2004, New Orleans. Panel: Mediated Spirituality: The Intersection of Religion and Mass Communication in Everyday Life.
Interconnected, Interdisciplinary and International: A Fresh Look at Celtic Cultural Studies. Opening speech at Celtic Representations conference, Oct. 23-25, 2003, University of Colorado, Center for British and Irish Studies.
Constructing ‘Celticity’: How Pagans Define Celtic Spirituality Through Popular Discourse on the World Wide Web. Presented at Celtic Representations, Oct. 23-25, 2003, University of Colorado, Boulder.
Cyberspace as Field Site:Implications for Conceptualizations of Place, Community and Culture in Ethnographic Methodologies. Presented at Recreating Identities: History, Memory and the Creation of Discourses. June 4, 2003, College of St. Mark and St. John, Plymouth, UK.
Heal Yourself and Heal the World: The Case of the “LOHAS” Marketplace as a Nature Religion of Spiritual Consumption. Presented at ASANAS, May 31, 2003, Open University, Milton Keynes, UK.
Real World in Virtual Time: The Role of the Land in Conceptualizations of ‘Celticity’ by Celtic Pagans on the Internet. Presented at AAR-SBL Regional conference, University of Colorado at Boulder, April 2003.
The Celtic Spirit in Cyberspace: A lecture for the Rescorla Series. June 2002, Cornwall, England. Lecture for the community sponsored by the Institute for Cornish Studies.
Constructing ‘Celticity’: How Pagans Define Celtic Spirituality through Popular Discourse on the Internet. Presented at the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, Salt Lake City, Nov. 2002.
Consumer Press:
- Natural Foods Merchandiser magazine
—Annual Natural Products Market Overview, 1991-1996; feature and news editor/reporter.
- Natural Products News (UK)
—Columnist on U.S. natural/organic industry
- Natural Business Journal and The LOHAS Journal
—Analyst for the natural/organic and LOHAS products industries
- Food Marketing Institute
—A Retailer’s Guide to Natural Foods and Related Products (edited)
- New Hope Communications Research Division
—The Natural Products Industry Overview Report
—The Medicinal Herb Market Report
—The Dietary Supplement Market Report
—A Guide to Leading Natural Foods Retailers
—The Natural Products Market Analysis
Also published in: Natural Home, Delicious! Magazine, Herbs for Health Magazine, Fort Collins Business World, Colorado Industrial Guide, Countryside Publication newspapers (Chicago area), Continental Express magazine, and Natural Way magazine
Related Experience
Administration:
Media, Religion and Culture Fellowship Coordinator, School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Responsible for organizing year-long fellowship program, including coordination of two annual seminars, publicity, advertising and all facets of program administration. Program includes dissertation and post-doctorate fellowships designed for scholars working in areas of media, religion and culture.
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, Jan. 2005 – Present
Conference Coordinator—Proposed original concept for international Celtic conference, which won grant funding from the Center for British and Irish Studies, University of Colorado. “Celtic Representations” is an international and interdisciplinary conference addressing contemporary Celtic cultures held each October. Raised $4,000 in additional funding. Coordinated the educational program, marketing communications, and all aspects of event operations. Oct. 2003, 2004
Vice President/Interim Director, San Luis Valley Economic Development Council, Alamosa, CO—Worked with private and public sectors in six-county region on tourism promotion, industrial recruitment, business retention and community leadership. Appointed interim director after one year. Wrote San Luis Valley Enterprise Zone Status proposal and successfully defended before state governing board to win coveted tax-benefit package. Responsible for public communication programs, for assessing community programs on need basis for funding, and for coordinating industry, government, and community efforts in all facets of development work including industrial recruitment, tourism, downtown revitalization, and infrastructure rehabilitation. 1986 - 1988
Research:
Post-Doctoral Fellow, Center for Media, Religion and Culture, University of Colorado, Boulder, July 2006 – July 2007.
Research Associate, NewMedia@Home Project, funded by The Lilly Endowment—Lead student interviewer and trainer. Responsible for conducting structured interviews and focus groups with families and teenagers across U.S. about media use and personal values. Analyze qualitative data and write academic texts for publication and conferences. Sept. 2002 – May 2006
Graduate Research, Center for British and Irish Studies, University of Colorado—Won Ogilvy Fellowship to study for six weeks in Cornwall, England, with the Institute for Cornish Studies, University of Exeter. Coordinated outreach programs with Cornish Diaspora organizations in the U.S. Lecturer on media, ethnography, and cultural studies. May - June, 2002
Research Director, Natural Business Communications, Broomfield, CO—Analyzed sales and trend data on natural/organic products and the LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability) marketplace. Generated annual LOHAS Market Trends Report, establishing the first U.S. benchmark figures for that industry. Wrote articles on market and consumer studies. 1996 - 2002
Director of Research, New Hope Communications, Boulder, CO ¾Started new department for major international media company in Healthy Living sector. Responsible for all phases of primary and secondary research projects, including study design, writing and editing reports, statistical analysis, marketing and promotion, budgeting, and managing subcontractors and staff. Produced Annual Market Overview, the leading annual report on the trends within the U.S. natural products industry. Wrote numerous other reports analyzing trends within the industry. 1991 – 1996
Teaching:
Guest Speaker, University of Colorado—Occasionally lecture on public relations, sustainability, and magazine and newspaper journalism to undergraduate classes at requests of instructors. Sept. 2001- Present
Teaching Assistant, University of Colorado—Taught recitation for Public Culture and Media undergraduate course. Sept. 2001- Dec. 2001
Teaching Assistant, University of Colorado—Assisted with Contemporary Mass Media undergraduate course. January 2001 - May 2001
Lab Instructor, Colorado State University¾Taught business communication twice weekly to approximately 100 undergraduate students during 1988/1989 school year.
Public Relations:
President, Natural Information LLC, Lafayette, CO—Founded public relations and marketing communication firm specializing in the natural and organic products industry. Assisted domestic and international companies with public relations, market research, marketing communications, advertising, and media relations. Freelance writer with more than 200 published works in trade and consumer press on health, lifestyle, agriculture and national legislation affecting natural and organic products. 1996 – 2001
Public Relations Specialist, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO ¾Provided communications support for statewide Colorado Rural Revitalization Project, a Kellogg community-development program, as a part of graduate assistantship and later as a part-time employee. Wrote quarterly newsletter, radio and video scripts, manuals and news releases. Served as liaison between the University and enrolled communities. 1988 - 1991
Journalism
Associate Editor, New Hope Communications, Boulder, CO¾Wrote and edited research column, feature stories and news for monthly trade magazine, Natural Foods Merchandiser. Promoted to Research Director.
Associate Editor, Alma Magazine, Alamosa, CO ¾Wrote features for consumer magazine in a part-time position. 1986 - 1987
Editor, The Cucharan Magazine, La Veta, CO ¾Coordinated all phases of semi-annual consumer magazine about Southern Colorado lifestyle. Supervised rollout. 1984 - 1985
Awards
Post-Doctoral Fellow, Center for Media, Religion and Culture, University of Colorado, 2006 - 2007.
University of Colorado, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Research Grant, $2,000, Spring, 2004. Research Fellowship award, $1,200, Spring 2003.
Center for British and Irish Studies Special Project Award for Celtic Representations Conference. $2,500. Oct. 2003 and Oct. 2004.
Ogilvy Fellowship, 2002. From the Center for British and Irish Studies, University of Colorado, Boulder. $2,500 research and travel award.
Residence Life “Academic Teaching Award.” Department of Housing, University of Colorado, Boulder. 2002.
Affiliations
Conference Organizer:
--“21st Century Celts,” 2006, Institute for Cornish Studies, Truro, Cornwall, UK.
--“Media, Spiritualities and the Public Sphere,” planned for June 2008, University of Colorado
--“Second Annual Celtic Representations,” 2004, University of Colorado
--“Celtic Representations,” 2003, University of Colorado
Organizations:
--Society for the Scientific Study of Religion
--International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture