Amelia Sharman

PhD candidate in Environmental Policy & Development

Department of Geography and the Environment

Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment

Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy (CCCEP)

London School of Economics and Political Science

Email: a.g.sharman [at] lse.ac.uk

Research

My PhD research is looking at the politics of contested knowledge, focusing specifically on the debate about climate change. I am mainly using theories from science and technology studies and environmental sociology, and am particularly interested in how research is used within policy-making environments. You can see my profile on the Grantham Research Institute page, and on the CCCEP page. I am supervised by Dr Richard Perkins, Associate Professor of Environmental Geography.

Academic background

I have an MSc (Distinction) from the School of Geography and the Environment at the University of Oxford (2008-2009). I was awarded first place in my MSc programme, Nature, Society and Environmental Policy, with my dissertation research entitled 'Evidence-based policy or policy-based evidence gathering? The case of the 10% target'. This research, supervised by Dr John Holmes, critically assessed the use of scientific and other evidence in the decision to implement a 10% target for biofuels in the European Union (Directive 2009/28/EC).

I also have a BA (Geography and French) and an MA (First Class Hons) from the School of Environment at the University of Auckland (2000-2004). My MA thesis was entitled 'Industry governance and regional economic development in Marlborough, Nelson and Tasman: clusters and the Greenshell mussel industry'. This research used commodity chain analysis to investigate the impact of agglomeration forces on the Greenshell mussel industry. My MA supervisor was Dr David Hayward.

Professional background

Between 2005-2010 (including leave for study purposes) I worked at the Ministry of Economic Development in New Zealand (now the Economic Development Group within the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment). I began in policy evaluation, participating in and leading several evaluations of business assistance programmes implemented by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, before moving into sector policy, working as a Policy Advisor, then Senior Policy Advisor on topics as varied as creative industries, radio astronomy, aviation, and capital markets development.

I have also worked as a Sustainability Specialist for the International Hydropower Association, focusing in particular on the implementation of the Hydropower Sustainability Assessment Protocol; as a Communications Officer for the International Growth Centre, a research centre based at the LSE and in partnership with Oxford University; and as a Teaching Fellow in Environmental Social Science at UCL, where I coordinated and delivered the 2013/14 third-year module of GEOG3012, Environmental Management: Critical Perspectives, as well as two lectures on Nature/Culture for a first-year class. Most recently I co-authored the 5th edition of the Global Climate Legislation Study.

Publications

Sharman, A. 2015. The impact of controversy on the production of scientific knowledge. Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy Working Paper 233 / Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment Working Paper 207. [pdf]
Nachmany, M., Fankhauser, S., Davidova, J., Kingsmill, N., Landesman, T., Roppongi, H., Schleifer, P., Setzer, J., Sharman, A., Singleton, C.S., Sundaresan, J. and Townshend, T. 2015. The 2015 Global Climate Legislation Study: A review of climate change legislation in 99 countries, Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, GLOBE, Inter-Parliamentary Union, London.
Howarth, C. and Sharman, A. 2015. Labeling in the climate debate: a critical review, WIRES Climate Change, 6(2): 239-254.
Sharman, A. 2014. Mapping the climate sceptical blogosphere, Global Environmental Change, 26: 159-170.
- Available at LSE Research Online here, background table of blogs available here
Sharman, A. and Holmes, J. 2010. Evidence-based policy or policy-based evidence gathering? Biofuels, the EU and the 10% target. Environmental Policy and Governance, 20(5): 309-321.
Lawrence, G., Sharman, A. and Chapple, B. 2009. Flying the nest: an analysis of Kiwi firms delisting from the NZX. Ministry of Economic Development Occasional Paper 09/01. Ministry of Economic Development, Wellington. [pdf]

Media

Deniers vs alarmists? It's time to lose the climate debate labels. Article on The Conversation, 19 February 2015.
Energy poverty: Global challenges and local solutions by Halff, Sovacool and Rozhon (eds). Book review in LSE Review of Books, 21 January 2015.
Leaving the comfort zone: Public engagement can help you think about your research from a fresh perspective. Blog post on The Impact of Social Sciences, 24 October 2014.
Can science fix climate change? by Mike Hulme. Book review in LSE Review of Books, 27 August 2014.
The fanaticism of the apocalypse by Pascal Bruckner. Book review in LSE Review of Books, 13 June 2013.
Why should sociology be interested in climate change? by John Urry. Book review in LSE Review of Books, 19 October 2012.
'We need to provide the space for constructive debates on climate change. Ignoring climate scepticism won't make it go away'. Blog post on British Politics and Policy at LSE, 23 March 2012.

Awards and scholarships

2014 - Postgraduate Project Support Programme (RADMA)
2012 - Postgraduate Project Support Programme (RADMA)
2011 - PhD Scholarship (LSE)
2009 - Nature, Society and Environmental Policy prize (University of Oxford)
2008 - Commonwealth Scholarship (University of Oxford)
2003 - Masters Scholarship (University of Auckland)
2002 - Summer Research Scholarship (University of Auckland)
2002 - Senior Prize in Geography, Senior Prize in French (University of Auckland)
2001 - Grace Kay award (University of Auckland)

Conference papers and invited lectures

2015 - Building bridges between climate scientists and sceptical voices, British Sociological Association Annual Conference, Glasgow Caledonian University, 15-17 April
2014 - Labelling opinions in the climate debate: a critical review, Changing Climate Change Communication Conference, VU University Amsterdam, 21-22 July
2014 - Mapping the climate sceptical blogosphere, Making Science Public Lecture Series, University of Nottingham, 6 February (invited lecture)
2013 - Mapping the climate sceptical blogosphere, RGS-IBG Annual International Conference, Royal Geographical Society, 28-30 August
2013 - Mapping the climate sceptical blogosphere, School of Environment Research Seminar Series, University of Auckland, 14 March
2013 - The cultural cognition of scientific consensus (Kahan et al 2011), Ministry of Primary Industries, Wellington, New Zealand, 7 March (invited lecture)

Other

I am a reviewer for Global Environmental Change, ISSN: 0959-3780; Environmental Policy and Governance, ISSN: 1756-9338; Land Use Policy, ISSN: 0264-8377, and Public Understanding of Science, ISSN 0963-6625. I am also a member of the executive of the LSE SU Beekeeping Society, participate in science outreach events such as the Natural History Museum late-nights, and am highly proficient in French.

Website last updated September 2015.