University of Massachusetts Amherst

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Ezra Markowitz

Professor, Environmental Conservation

Involvement: 

School or College: 

College of Natural Sciences

Bio: 

Ezra Markowitz is Professor of Environmental Decision-Making in the Department of Environmental Conservation at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. His research and teaching focus on the intersection of decision-making, persuasive communication, public engagement with science, and environmental sustainability. He is particularly interested and expert in the practical application of behavioral science to improve individuals’ and communities’ environmental decision-making; he also has deep expertise in the field of climate change communication and public engagement. He is the author of over six dozen peer- reviewed research papers, book chapters, and reports spanning a wide range of topics related to sustainability and conservation. At UMass Amherst, Markowitz teaches courses on Environmental Decision-Making and Public Engagement and Communication for Scientists. He holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Sciences, Studies & Policy and an M.S. in Psychology from the University of Oregon, as well as a B.A. in Psychology from Vassar College. Markowitz previously held appointments as an Earth Institute Fellow at Columbia University and as a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Princeton University. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and a Fellow with the FrameWorks Institute.

Research Proposal Title: 

Promoting human flourishing in a (climate) changing world: Integrating health promotion, community building and environmental sustainability through behavior change

Research: 

In order to achieve a more just, sustainable and healthy society—that is, to promote human flourishing—we will need to re-envision what it means to live a “good” life. In part that means individually and collectively rethinking how different dimensions of our lives (e.g., physical and mental health, economic security, environmental sustainability, social connections and community) fit together to form the “bigger picture” of our lived experiences and how we can more intentionally integrate them to promote our own and one another’s shared flourishing. Using a mixed-methods social scientific approach, this project aims to inform, develop and test best practices and efforts that promote human flourishing through the combination of robust behavior change tools and narrative storytelling techniques. The project focuses in particular on uncovering and leveraging the connections across three core domains of human well-being: health, community, and sustainability.