My research approach has evolved over the years. Earlier in my career I used social psychology to understand how people make decisions about the environment and how psychological processes can be used to guide people to make better choices. I am still interested in the role that values and emotions play in shaping our interactions with the natural world and environmental resources, as well as how they come together with larger scale forces to shape institutions, communities, and policies. More recently, my work has incorporated more community-based approaches and critical frameworks, including critical discourse analysis and participatory ethnography. Through this work, I am most interested in the stories that communities and institutions tell about themselves and how this rhetoric shapes what is possible for social and environmental change.
I have applied these lenses to a range of topics from public acceptance of recycled water to stakeholder engagement in shark fisheries management. All of my projects take a problem driven approach and are designed so findings have real implications for environmental policy and management. You can explore some of my past and present research topics below, as well as current publications, here. |
This research area has recently been awarded funding by both National Geographic and the Save Our Seas Foundation. Biscayne Bay is an ecologically and economically critical marine estuary that exists in the shadow of downtown Miami-Dade County. Home to considerable biodiversity, including several endangered species, the Bay is threatened by the rapid population growth and development that has taken place along the southeastern coast of Florida. The Miami-Biscayne Bay system is an ideal case study of the many problems facing coastal-urban systems - from sea level rise to harmful algal blooms. My research in this area is focused on the social-ecological systems in place, prior attempts at management, and interventions to engage the Miami community in more effective marine conservation.
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My recent research is focused on how individuals and communities view, utilize, and conserve marine resources. This work has centered on the social-ecological systems underpinning shark and ray fisheries, both recreational and commercial/subsistence. Recent case studies include:
St. Vincent. This collaborative study is focused on the shark fishery in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines funded by Save Our Seas. The island nation of St. Vincent has long traditions of diffuse subsistence fishing, including for marine mammals. Recent work there demonstrated relatively widespread consumption of shark meat, potentially tied to cultural and economic exchange with nearby Trinidad and Tobago. The Field School team has been using ethnographic methods to quantify and describe the shark fishery to better understand the participants, methods, and species involved, as well as the potential impacts on public health and the sustainability of shark populations. Manta Rays. This research explores how local recreational fishermen interact with a population of manta rays (Mobula birostris) along the south eastern coast of Florida. Structured interviews with fishermen are being used to determine what fishermen know about manta rays, including their conservation status and associated policies, how fishers are interacting with mantas, and their willingness to adopt behavior changes to help protect mantas. Land-based Shark Fishing. This policy discourse analysis studies recent rule changes effecting the recreational land-based shark fishery in Florida. While relatively small, this fishery has attracted increasing attention through at times controversial posts on social media. Public meetings and online public comments were analyzed to explore how these rule changes reflect conflict between resource users and value systems in the state and how these changes are playing out in policy action. |
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My collaborative research partnerships, field work, and non-profit work have meant that I often work with ecologists and physiologists focused on shark biology, ecology, and conservation. I contribute a social science perspective to work on a variety of ecology and fisheries topics, including population genetics, public health impacts of mercury contamination, feeding ecology, and shark reproduction. I'm also working on projects studying public attitudes towards sharks and the threats facing them.
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Water reuse is generally less expensive and better for the environment than alternative solutions to water shortages such as desalination. However, there is a general psychological aversion to water reuse known as the “Yuck Factor”. Negative public attitudes limit the possible applications of water reuse and in some cases, public opposition alone has overturned reuse plans.
As part of my PhD dissertation, I conducted a series of experiments to explore attitudes and emotions underlying water recycling and which communication frames can alter perceptions of this issue. I explored how public attitudes interact with institutional changes at the state level to create barriers and opportunities for water reuse policies. I also employed ethnographic research methods, discourse and policy analysis to explore the connection between public attitudes, changing regulations and policy decision-making in Texas, where direct potable reuse projects are beginning to emerge. |
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