Dr Lynda Rodwell

Associate Professor (Reader) in Ecological Economics

Member of the Centre for Marine and Coastal Policy Research

Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy

Qualifications

Academic Background:

• 2001 PhD. Environmental Economics and Management. University of York, U.K. Thesis title: "Marine reserves and the enhancement of tropical fisheries".
• 1997 MSc. Environmental Economics and Management. University of York, U.K. Thesis title: "The effects of a biological invasion: Lake Victoria and the Nile Perch ".
• 1993 Postgraduate Certificate of Education, Mathematics, University of Cambridge, U.K.
• 1990 BSc Combined Honours in Economics and Mathematics, University of Leeds, U.K.
  

Teaching interests

As an Ecological Economist I am interested in how humans interact with the environment through the economy. In my teaching I focus on the priorities of ecological economics of achieving first a sustainable scale, then just distribution of resources and finally economic efficiency. I am passionate about rejecting the notion that our economy can keep growing on a planet with finite resources. As Kenneth Boulding so eloquently put it: “Anyone who believes in indefinite growth in anything physical, on a physically finite planet, is either mad or an economist” (or, you might add, a politician).

I am module leader for:

• Economics of the Marine Environment (PG)
• Environmental Management and Sustainability (UG)
• Interdisciplinary Approaches in Environmental Science (UG)

Staff serving as external examiners

External Examiner for MSc in Ecological Economics at the University of Edinburgh (Since 2017) 

Research interests

My research to date has focussed primarily on the sustainable management of the marine environment – the source of many of our natural resources and the sink for much of our waste. In particular I evaluate the economic, social and environmental consequences of human actions including policy decisions such as the creation of marine protected areas and the development of marine renewable energy. The research approaches I employ are equally applicable to terrestrial environments.

Research degrees awarded to supervised students

Grants & contracts

2018–2022: EU H2020 RURITAGE – Rural regeneration through systemic heritage-led strategies project led by the University of Bologna, Italy. Role: Plymouth PI (€470K) Total project budget ca. €10m

2018–2021: EU INTERREG Atlantic Arc DiadEs - Assessing and enhancing ecosystem services provided by diadromous fish in a climate change context. Project led by Institut national de recherche en sciences et technologies pour l'environnement et l'agriculture (Irstea), France. Role: Plymouth PI. (€2.2m Total budget, €183K to PU)   

2013–2015: Knowledge Transfer Partnership with Fowey Harbour Commission. £128000: Role: Co-I

2012–2015: EU INTERREG, (PANACHE - Protected Area Network Across the CHannel Ecosystem) €380,000: Role Co-I

2012–2015: Evaluating the impacts of integrating fisheries and conservation management and Severn Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority - £72,000 Role: PI

2012–2013: Marine Renewables Knowledge Exchange Programme - NERC £18,000. Role: PI

2011–2014: MERIFIC Marine Energy in Far Peripheral & Island Communities EU Intereg Project Priority 4, Objective 9 –. €4.9 million (UoP €400,000). Role Co-I.

2011–2012: Valuation of Ocean Biodiversity. Gulbenkian Foundation. Role: Co-I. £55,000.

2011–2012: Social perspectives on the establishment of marine conservation zones. MMO Fisheries Challenge – Funding £26,000, Role PI.

2011–2012: Extension: Lyme Bay - a case study: measuring recovery of benthic species, assessing potential spillover effects and socio-economic changes. DEFRA. Co-I, £140,000

2009–2012: PhD Studentship (NERC): ‘Establishing no-take marine protected areas around wind farms’. Role: PI, Value: £70,000

2009–2012: PhD studentship (UoP), Investigating the economic, social and environmental impacts of Boscombe artificial reef. Role: Socio-economic lead. Value: £70,000

2008–2011: Lyme Bay – a case study: measuring recovery of benthic species, assessing potential spillover effects and socio-economic changes. DEFRA funded project. Role: Socio-economic team member, Co-I, £458,324

2007–2010: QUEST_Fish, Predicting the impacts and consequences of climate change on global fish production. Role: PI (UoP budget: £65,000)

2007–2010: PhD Studentship (The Marine Institute, UoP): Valuing marine conservation in the UK. Role: PI. Total value: £60,000

2007: Devon Wildlife Trust - Surveys for Marine Planning in Lyme Bay. Role: Joint PI and Leader of social and economic research. Total funds £28,000.

Conferences organised

• 2014 – Organising committee member for 2nd Marine and Coastal Policy Forum, Hosted by the Centre for Marine and Coastal Policy Research June 18-20, 2014.
• 2013 – Convenor of ‘Fisheries and Marine Renewable Energy Interactions: Assessment and Mitigation’ international workshop as part of the Marine Renewable Energy Knowledge Exchange Programme, held in York, UK, April 2013.
• 2011 – Convenor of ‘Fisheries and Marine Renewable Energy Interactions’ international workshop as part of the Marine Renewable Energy Knowledge Exchange Programme, held in Orkney, Scotland, May 2011.
• 2011 – Co-ordinator of the UK's 1st Marine and Coastal Policy Forum, Hosted by the Center for Marine and Coastal Policy Research, Marine Institute, University of Plymouth, June 22-24, 2011.
• 2010 – Invited convenor of A Marine Education Trust funded workshop - Establishing a marine protected area in the Chagos Archipelago: socio-economic considerations. Hosted by Royal Holloway, University of London. 
• 2009 – Invited convenor of a SOFI funded workshop - Science behind a Chagos MPA, Hosted by Unviersity of Southampton.
• 2006 – Fisheries and Aquaculture Workshop Funded by ESRC/NERC Hosted at the University of Plymouth.

Other academic activities

• Member of Programme Development Committee for the New Masters in Economics at Schumacher College.
• Research grant evaluator for the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
• Manuscript reviewer for peer reviewed journals including: Global Environmental Change, Environment and Development Economics, International Affairs, Ecological Economics, Coastal Management, Fisheries Research, ICES Journal of Marine Science, Journal of Environmental Management, Ecological Modelling and Ocean and Coastal Management. 
• Professional Affiliations include: International Society for Ecological Economics, Resource Modeling Association, European Association of Economic and Resource Economists.

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