Research
Across the Environmental Studies Department, our research emphasizes the complex relationships and interactions between ecology and society. We embrace quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods approaches, selecting research methods most appropriate for the questions at hand. We develop and test theories and models using observational, historical, and experimental approaches. We also embrace research approaches based in critical theory and non-Western knowledge systems. We look at the nature of knowledge production, and at the social, cultural, and political forces underlying environmental change. We value and excel as disciplinary scholars while striving to create and advance new scholarly spaces that transcend traditional boundaries.
We are involved in long-term collaborations with leading national and international scholars, addressing environmental problems that confront the state of California, the nation, and the planet. We have major, sustained research initiatives throughout Latin America, Asia and Oceania, Australia, Africa, and Europe.
Our research covers a variety of topics, from tropical bird biodiversity, extractive industries, reforestation initiatives, sustainable aquaculture, pollination in urban gardens, nitrogen pollution from agriculture to geoengineering governance, impacts of AI on rural communities, land dispossession, and how to bring about just transitions for labor beyond fossil fuels. We bring to the table deep disciplinary training in ecology, ecosystem science, sociology, politics, geography, economics, policy, and history. We conduct research that is both respected for its academic rigor and well-situated within contemporary interdisciplinary discussions to bring sustainable change to the public through advocacy work.
