Ashlee Neumann is a PhD student in Advertising at the University of Texas at Austin, where her work sits at the intersection of health and science communication, consumer behavior, and advertising. Her research focuses on how people understand and respond to environmental health risks in everyday products, with a particular emphasis on endocrine-disrupting chemicals in cosmetics, personal care, and fashion. She is especially interested in how social norms, identity, and media systems shape consumption rituals and perceptions of safety.
Ashlee’s current projects explore how communication strategies influence behavior change, including messaging around “clean” beauty, ingredient transparency, and sustainability in consumer goods. Her work draws on frameworks such as Consumer Culture Theory and the tripartite model of influence to better understand how parents, peers, and media, increasingly shaped by social platforms and algorithms, interact to influence decision-making.
In addition to her academic work, Ashlee is the co-host of Trash(ed), a University of Texas Green Fund-sponsored podcast that explores the science and social norms of waste, overconsumption, and sustainability. The show translates research into accessible conversations for women, families, and the “trash curious,” with a focus on practical solutions and systems-level thinking.
She also shares research-informed insights on beauty, health, and consumption through her platforms @trashwyfe and @skinsabbath, where she examines the cultural and regulatory forces shaping the products we use every day. Website ashleeneumann.com
EDUCATION HISTORY
MEd, STEM Education, University of Texas at Austin
BS, Chemistry and Secondary Education, University of Nevada, Reno