Natural Resources and Sustainable Development

The Environment, Nature and Society research theme concentrates on interactions between humans and nature. We apply interdisciplinary approaches and a wide variety of natural and social science research methods. The approaches and concepts used involve socio-ecological systems, environmental sociology, environmental economics, natural resource management and economics, governance, and sustainability analysis. We also work with different environmental policies and Sustainable Development Goals, practical application of the ecosystem services concept, biodiversity conservation and restoration, nature and fishing tourism development, environmental conflicts and management of natural resources. Much of our work is conducted in collaboration with stakeholders at different societal levels, from local communities and organisations to governmental authorities. We consider a broad range of environments, including coastal habitats, fisheries and aquaculture systems, freshwater ecosystems, forests and urban areas.

Specific research topics:

• Resilient food systems and supply
• Multifunctional landscapes
• Recreational fishing and fishing tourism
• Eco-labelling and sustainable food
• Contamination and remediation of coastal areas
• Ocean observations
• Seagrass, fisheries and coastal areas
• Ecosystem services, biodiversity, sustainable development goals
• Forests and society
• Freshwater systems and water governance
• Limits to growth and scale
• Transformative change of social-ecological relations in the past and present
• Human-animal interaction
• Power, inequality, and conflicts over natural environments
• Geosociality and geopower

The Energy, Resources and Society research theme focuses on problem-oriented interdisciplinary research concerned with the sustainable use and management of energy, natural resources, and safe infrastructures and settlements underpinning contemporary modern society. We analyse the global supply of fossil fuels and critical raw materials, sustainable deployment of and resource requirements for renewable energy technologies, energy/climate governance, energy security, energy futures and resource geographies, and establishment of safe and sustainable settlements and human infrastructures. In our research, we combine natural sciences (e.g., geology, physics, and volcanology) with social science approaches (e.g., sociotechnical imaginaries, political geology, and security studies). We collaborate closely with colleagues from several international research institutions and universities, including the China University of Petroleum-Beijing, the Tokyo Institute of Technology, Durham University, and the University of Iceland.

Specific research topics:

• Sustainable energy transition
• Sustainable energy systems
• Energy systems analysis and impacts
• Energy security and governance
• Resource extractivism, security and governance
• Space resources as a source of critical raw materials
• Sociotechnical imaginaries and energy visions
• Carbon budgets and regional climate policy
• Volcanically versus anthropogenically induced climate change
• Volcanic threats to society and infrastructures
• Systems shifts and systems interactions for low-carbon energy
• Tools for exploring local energy transformation

Climate Change Leadership (CCL) at the Department of Earth Sciences in Uppsala University is a transdisciplinary research theme that explores the interactions between environmental science and society at large. The researchers analyse what roles different governance systems and actors can play in the context, and in particular how effective and fair political or other strategies for societal change can be developed and implemented, including the consequences these might have. Climate transformation, governance and policy is a broad theme at the centre of the CCL research, and a range of related environmental goals are also specifically targeted in various studies.

Read more in our Climate Change Leadership Blog

Specific research topics:

• Climate science denial
• Science-policy interactions and decision-making
• Climate leadership among various stakeholders
• Political strategies for achieving climate targets
• Climate change and democracy
• Climate policy and public acceptance
• Climate mitigation and sufficiency
• Climate policy and circular economy
• Green transformation
• Wicked problem governance
• Climate governance and private diplomacy
• Synergies and barriers between climate and biodiversity policies
• Policies for multifunctional landscapes

International Zennström professorship in climate change leadership

The CCL theme is host for the Zennström guest professorship in climate change leadership, which is a series of visiting professors co-financed by a generous donation from Zennström Philanthropies, founded by Uppsala University alumn Niklas Zennström and his wife Catherine Zennström.

Read more about the guest professors on our blog

Earth System Governance

The Earth System Governance Project is a global research network that aims to advance knowledge at the interface between global environmental change and governance. The network connects and mobilizes scholars from the social sciences and humanities researching at local and global scales. From 2025 to 2030 The International Project Office of the Earth System Governance Project will run by Climate Change Leadership at the Department of Earth Sciences.

Read more about the Earth System Governance Project