Professor Nikoleta Jones

Contact details

Email: nikoleta dot jones at warwick dot ac dot uk

Room: R2.13, Ramphal Building

Professor

Environmental Sociology

People & Nature

Environmental Policy

Biography

I am a sociologist, with research centered on integrating social dimensions into contemporary discussions surrounding environmental policies, particularly in biodiversity conservation and climate change. Prior to joining the University of Warwick, I was as a Principal Research Associate at the University of Cambridge. My expertise lies in the application of mixed methods, with a focus on developing behavioral predictive models that incorporate both spatial and temporal elements. I have authored over 60 peer-reviewed journal articles and contributed to successful research grant applications, collectively securing over £2.2 million in external funding. My latest project, FIDELIO, funded by the European Research Council, investigates the socio-economic aspects of biodiversity conservation policies across Europe.

Research with impact

My work has always been policy driven and I have worked across different fields including biodiversity conservation, climate change adaptation, forest management, waste management and water management. For example, in the project FIDELIO, I led the development of the largest database in Europe capturing social impacts of protected areas working in collaboration with 20 park authorities. I also led the development of the Social Capital and Impact Assessment Tool for Protected Areas. This work has been driven by targets set in the EU Biodiversity Strategy, the UK net zero goals and the recently published Global Biodiversity Framework.

Teaching and Supervision

I have contributed to teaching and learning activities in higher education institutions since 2009 and I am a senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. I have designed and led 5 PG and 2 UG modules and have been involved in the delivery of 6 additional modules. Between 2015-2018 I was the co-ordinator of the MSc Sustainability at Anglia Ruskin University. I have supervised 3 PhD students to completion and I am currently supervising 5 PhD students. I have also supervised over 25 MSc/MA dissertations.

Publications

Selected Recent Articles (for full list see here)

Zhang Y., West P., Thakoli L.,…,Jones N.,…, Agyei F.K. 2023. Governance and Conservation Effectiveness in Protected Areas and Indigenous and Locally Managed Areas, Annual Review of Environment and Resources. 48, In press. (contribution: review of governance in European Protected and Conserved Areas).

Malesios C., Begley A., Jones N., McGinlay J. 2023. Exploring social impacts of protected areas across space: A Bayesian regression modeling comparison and potential implications. Mathematical Biosciences and Engineering.

McGinlay J., Holtvoeth J., Begley A., Dorstel J., Kockelmann A., Lammertz M., Malesios C., Jones N. Perceived Social Impacts of Protected Areas, Their Influence on Local Public Support and Their Distribution across Social Groups: Evidence from the Eifel National Park, Germany, during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Sustainability, 2023, 15(14), 10848.

Jones N., Malesios C., Begley A., McGinlay J., Gkoumas V., 2023. Utilising impact, governance and social indicators to predict support for Protected Areas, Environmental Research Letters, 18, 05411, Contribution: writing 80% of the paper, Impact Factor: 6.947

McGinlay J., Gkoumas V., Malesios C., Begley A., Jones N., Exploring local public support for Protected Areas: what social factors influence stated and active support among local people? Env Science and Policy, Accepted

Andrianandrasana H, Savage J., Volahy A.T., Long P., Jones N., 2023. Participatory Ecological Monitoring (PEM). GAIA journal. In press.

Jones N., McGinlay J., Kontoleon A., Maguire-Rajpaul V.A., Dimitrakopoulos P.G., Gkoumas V., Riseth J.A., Sepp K., Vanclay F. 2022. Understanding Public Support for European Protected Areas: A Review of the Literature and Proposing a New Approach for Policy Makers. Land, 11 (5), 733.

Jones N., McGinlay J., Jones A., Malesios C., Holtvoeth J., Dimitrakopoulos P.G., Gkoumas V. 2021. Conservation Letters, 14: e12800, 1-9, COVID-19 and protected areas: Impacts, conflicts, and possible management solutions.

Schere C.M., Schreckenberg K., Dawson T.P., Jones N., It’s Just Conservation: To What Extent Are Marine Protected Areas in the Irish Sea Equitably Governed and Managed? Frontiers in Marine Science, 919.

Dimitrakopoulos P.G., Jones N., Protected areas in forest conservation: Challenges and opportunities. Forests, 12(4) 488.

Mikolajczak K.M., Jones N., Sandom C.J., Wynne-Jones S., Beardsall A., Burgelman S., Ellam L., Wheeler H.C., 2021. Rewilding—The farmers’ perspective. Perceptions and attitudinal support for rewilding among the English farming community. People and Nature, 4, 1435-1449.

Jones N., Malesios C., Kantartzis A., Dimitrakopoulos P.G. 2020. The role of location and social impacts of Protected Areas on subjective wellbeing. Environmental Research Letters, 15, 114030