Matt will study the integration of novel solar installations into the ecological and agricultural functions of working landscapes. He hopes to find a balance between the ecological needs of landscapes and increasing demand for renewable energy. Building on his previous work with The Next System Project, Burke will collaborate with Leadership for the Ecozoic to create place-based research-to-action projects. He will collaborate with Jon Erickson (Rubenstein) and Stephanie Hurley (College of Agriculture and Life Sciences).

Matthew Burke completed a Ph.D. in Renewable Resources — Environment (May 2019) at McGill University under the supervision of Professors Peter G. Brown (McGill University) and Jennie C. Stephens (Northeastern University), with support from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Matthew’s doctoral research focused on sociopolitical and ecological dimensions of the renewable energy transition by examining energy democracy in theory and practice, emphasizing groups active in northeastern North America. Matthew holds a Master of Public Administration and Graduate Certificate in Ecological Economics from the University of Vermont, a Master of Arts in Environmental Education from the University of New Mexico, and a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources from the Ohio State University. Matthew has served as a Research Fellow at The Next System Project, a Graduate Research Fellow at the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center, and a participant in the Science Outside the Lab North program for science-policy training.

Congratulations on this big accomplishment Matt!

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