IEA Founders
Economist Demetri Kantarelis and Geographer Kevin Hickey founded the Interdisciplinary Environmental Association in the early 1990s. Today, Dr. Kantarelis remains a professor of economics at Assumption College and is the Editor in Chief of the IEA's academic journal, Interdisciplinary Environmental Review. Dr. Kevin Hickey is the Executive Director of the IEA and is a retired Associate Professor of Geography from Assumption College.
Executive Board
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Greg Cronin is the President of the Interdisciplinary Environmental Association and President of Yon Sel Lanmou, which means "One Love" in Haitian Kreyol. Greg developed the transdisciplinary scholarly approach that he uses to address environmental and human problems in Haiti. Trained as an ecologist and recognizing the need to work in solidarity with experts from multiple fields, he expanded the STEM disciplines to include the Arts, Humanities, and Recreation, forming the acronym HAMSTER. His work in Haiti revealed the devastation of colonialism, genocide, and slavery on the environment. Greg now focuses on Indigenization and decolonization efforts to address environmental problems and improve the livelihoods of those most seriously harmed by colonization.
Greg Cronin Ph.D.
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Amy Erickson Ph.D.
Dr. Amy Anne Erickson is the Vice President of the Interdisciplinary Environmental Association. She is an associate professor of Biological Sciences at Louisiana State University Shreveport. As a marine ecologist, Dr. Erickson examines feeding ecology, trying to identify patterns and mechanisms responsible for them. She is particularly interested in chemical ecology. She has worked in mangrove, seagrass, and coral reef ecosystems. She has published in journals such as The Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology and The Journal of Chemical Ecology. She also is currently working on the control of the invasive, freshwater fern Salvinia molesta, which is particularly problematic in Louisiana and Texas. Dr. Erickson has been the recipient of multiple grants from the LA Board of Regents Support Fund, the most recent of which advances studies in GIS. In addition to serving as Council for the IEA, Dr. Erickson has served as Graduate Director of the MS in Biological Sciences Program at LSUS, a member of the Science and Education Advisory Council for the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, and a research associate/collaborator of the Smithsonian Marine Station in Fort Pierce.
Advisory Chair
Kalim Shah Ph.D.
Kalim Shah is a recognized expert on public policy, regulation and governance in small island jurisdictions.
As an institutional theorist, his research addresses science-based policy and regulatory design and administration for climate change, pollution prevention, clean technology, industrialization and sustainable production and consumption. His new work is on the effectiveness of tools such as technology needs assessments and regulatory impact assessments for informing policy decisions. He is currently Director of the Island Policy Lab and a professor of Energy and Environmental Policy and the Joseph R. Biden Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration, University of Delaware.
He is the Coordinator of the Universities Consortium of Small Island States, a United Nations Multi-stakeholder Partnership and served as Coordinating Lead Author for Environmental Policy Assessment of the UN Global Environmental Outlook 6 Report. His expertise are called upon in the international sphere to provide advice, research, and analysis for organizations including the World Bank Group, InterAmerican Development Bank, United Nations Development Program, Pan-American Health Organization and various governments of island countries including Guyana and Suriname where he designed the national climate change policies.
Advisory Council
Shane Epting is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the Missouri University of Science and Technology.
His research addresses philosophical issues in transportation, infrastructure, food systems, and future cities. He has published dozens of articles in several journals. His previous books include The Morality of Urban Mobility: Technology and Philosophy of the City and Saving Cities: A Taxonomy of Urban Technologies. Epting is an award-winning professor who brings his passion for discovery into the classroom. He has created and taught innovative courses such as Creating Future Cities, Transportation Justice, and Philosophy of the City. He has been a guest on nationally syndicated radio, quoted in media, given several keynote lectures and numerous invited talks, and delivered dozens of presentations worldwide. Learn more about his work at www.shanepting.org
Shane Epting Ph.D.
Mai Kuha is a professor of English at Ball State University who lives and breathes linguistic structure and its lessons about how human society and the human mind work. Her research goal is to contribute to our understanding of the linguistic phenomena that underlie social and environmental problems through projects in sociolinguistics and pragmatics that contribute to social justice, improve intercultural communication and understanding, raise awareness of sustainability issues, and help improve the effectiveness of environmental discourse. Kuha's research articles have appeared in the Journal of Pragmatics and Society & Animals.
Mai Kuha Ph.D.
Meenal Shrivastava Ph.D.
Meenal Shrivastava is a professor of Political Economy and Global Studies at Athabasca University.
As a scholar trained in literature, history, and political economy, Dr. Shrivastava examines globalization as a description, a process, as well as an ideology along a historical continuum of movement of humans, ideas, institutions, commodities, and technologies. Her research has so far led to the publication of three books with Write in Power: An Anthology of the Personal and the Political, as her most recent. In addition to serving as Council for the IEA, She also serves on the boards of several academic journals and associations in Canada, US, and South Africa. For the past fifteen years, she has lived in Canada during a period of acknowledgment and conciliation with its colonial history. Realizing that stories are a powerful tool of intellectual stimulation and emotional persuasion to counter the pervasive ‘othering’ and hate-baiting in this post-truth era, she has added creative non-fiction to her academic writings. As one born with caste and class privileges to now being an immigrant of color on Indigenous lands, she writes from the liminal spaces of her various identities.
Geoff Beattie Ph.D.
Geoff Beattie is a Professor of Psychology at Edge Hill University and has been Visiting Professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He obtained his Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Cambridge and was awarded the Spearman Medal by the British Psychological Society for 'published psychological research of outstanding merit' and the internationally-acclaimed Mouton d'Or for his work in semiotics. His book with Laura McGuire ‘The Psychology of Climate Change’ which identifies psychological barriers to climate change mitigation and what is missing in current climate change campaigns was selected by The Bookseller in conjunction with UCL as one of the ten ‘essential environment reads’ in their Academic Book week campaign in March 2020. Geoff has acted as a consultant to the Born Free Foundation on the psychology of trophy hunting. His book ‘Trophy Hunting: A Psychological Perspective’ was shortlisted for the 2019 Taylor & Francis Outstanding Book and Digital Product Award in the Outstanding Professional Category. Geoff is also a member of the International Panel on Behavior Change (IPBC) which meets at the U.N. in Paris (UNEP) in order to influence approaches and policy on behavior change globally. He is a member of both the Scientific Committee and the Media Committee of the IPBC.
Paola M Garcia Ph.D.
Paola Massyel Garcia Meneses has a degree in biology from the Faculty of Sciences at National Autonoma University of Mexico, UNAM, and is currently a researcher at the National Laboratory of Sustainability Science (LANCIS), Institute of Ecology. Her work focuses in the areas of vulnerability, adaptation, and resilience to global changes. She has held positions in the public sector as Deputy Director of Conservation of Biological Communities and Adaptation to Climate Change, as well as in organizations such as the United Nations and academia. She has published articles in international journals, technical reports and book chapters as well as taught in the UK, Ecuador, and Mexico.
Paola is a representative within the Climate Change and Sustainable Cities Working Committees of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) among others and most recently is a lead developer of the Mexican Carbon Capture and Storage Platform, a partnership between LANCIS and the University of Edinburgh.
Team
Olivia Cason acts as a consultant for the Interdisciplinary Environmental Association and is a contributing writer and editor for Footprint App. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science and Policy from Saint Edward's University and is currently studying a Master of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies of Environmental, Economic, and Social Sustainability from Universitat Autonoma Barcelona.
Her initiatives in the nonprofit sector help advance mission awareness, online visibility, and inclusivity while her eye for detail and colorful spirit can merge topics in environmental science and sustainability into creative pieces of art. Her writing links social, scientific, and global perspectives so that she can effectively reach diverse audiences from scientists, educators, students, and activists.
Olivia Cason