A specialist in pre-colonial African history, Dr. Klieman’s first book focused on the history of Bantu and Batwa (“Pygmy”) peoples over a 3000-year period and was a finalist for the Herskovitz Best Book in African Studies Award in 2003. This book is considered a groundbreaking contribution to the study of pre-colonial Africa. Dr. Klieman was recently awarded the University of Houston Gear Grant to continue research for her second book about the history of oil and the environment in Africa. She is a recipient of the University’s Teaching Excellence Award.