Dr. Usher received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from Spalding University in Louisville, Kentucky, a Masters of Urban Planning degree from the University of Louisville, and a Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning from Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. His research interests focus on urban food systems and he engages this topic at the intersection of food access, social justice, regional governance and community economic development. His research also extends to the nation of Belize where he investigates urban agriculture and greenspace as methods of climate change mitigation and resiliency. Dr. Usher is the Director of the Belize Study Abroad Program and Affiliate Faculty with the Environmental Science Graduate Program, the Initiative for Food and AgriCultural Transformation and the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity.