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I hold a PhD in rural planning and development from the School of Environmental Design and Rural Development, University of Guelph (2014), with specialization in resource governance, climate change, rural studies and international development. I completed my MA and BA in human (urban) geography from Western University (2001) and University of Ghana respectively.
I was a research fellow and instructor in Watershed Planning Practice at the University of Guelph (2014-15), instructor in Environment and Sustainability Planning at Western University (2014-16 and 2023-25), and research associate in disability studies at McMaster University. A good part of my career was industry, mostly as quality assurance expert in the auto industry.
My interdisciplinary research explores the intersection of rural-urban planning, natural resource management, and water governance, with a particular focus on how environmental change, sustainability and resource security shape livelihoods and development outcomes in Africa and the global south.
My main research focus is the relationship between environmental change, planning and development of human systems and natural resource management. This includes:
- Land use, planning and community development
- Food and agricultural systems
- Water and natural resources governance
- Livelihoods, health and disability
- Africa and global south
- Laurier Research Culture Fund (2026), co-applicant. $1499
- Godwin Arku, Kenneth O. Mensah, Nii K. Allotey & Ebenezer Addo Frempong. 2016. Non-compliance with building permit regulations in Accra-Tema city-region, Ghana: exploring the reasons from the perspective of multiple stakeholders. Planning Theory and Practice. Vol. 17 (3), 361-384
- Kenneth Mensah & John Fitzgibbon. 2014. Duolocal Residence and Gender Relations in Urban Domestic Water Supply: Understanding the Ga in Contemporary Ghana. Canadian Journal of African Studies. Vol. 47 (3), 501-518
- Kenneth O. Mensah & John Fitzgibbon. 2013. Responsiveness of Ada Sea Defence Project to Salt Water Intrusion Associated with Sea Level Rise. Journal of Coastal Conservation. 17:75.
- Kenneth Mensah & John Fitzgibbon. 2012. Tasty Water of the Good Samaritan: Collaborative Governance and Rural Capacity Enhancement for Adapting Water Sources to Climate Change. African Geographical Review. 31(2), 163-182.
- John FitzGibbon & Kenneth O. Mensah. 2012. Climate Change as a Wicked Problem: An Evaluation of Institutional Context for Rural Water Management. SAGE Open. doi: 10.1177/2158244012448487
- GESC391 Wildlife and Rural Resource Management
- GESC290 Environmental Concepts and Approaches
- EDRD3450 Watershed Planning Practice
- ES274 One Earth, One Health
- EnvrSust 9011 & 9012 Foundations of Sustainability
- John FitzGibbon & Kenneth O. Mensah. 2012. Climate Change as a Wicked Problem: An Evaluation of Institutional Context for Rural Water Management. SAGE Open. doi: 10.1177/2158244012448487
Contact Info:
Office location: 3C11 Arts Building
Office hours:
Wednesday 3:30-4:30 p.m. or by appointment