Sadowski-Smith works in border and migration studies. She has published "The New Immigrant Whiteness: Race, Neoliberalism, and Post-Soviet Migration to the United States," "Border Fictions," and "Globalization on the Line."

Adamson is President's Professor of environmental humanities in the Department of English. She is Director of Humanities for the Environment, North America & the BRIDGES Flagship Hub at ASU's Global Futures Laboratory.