Dr Holly Harris

Holly Harris is an environmental anthropologist specialising in qualitative approaches to social-environmental issues. Her work draws on concepts and methodologies from anthropology, ecology, biology, human geography and conservation social science to address issues such as biodiversity conservation, climate change and development, and people-nature connections. She is currently an Associate Lecturer in DICE. Previously, Dr Harris has worked with Forest Research developing guidance for land advisors on harnessing farmers' socio-cultural values to inform tree-planting strategies, and on the application of social science approaches to environmental policy. Dr Harris also works with local community organisations delivering impact and process evaluations to understand the significance of nature-based interventions to health and wellbeing.

Dr Harris gained a PhD in Ethnobiology from DICE. Her PhD focussed on human-plant interactions in southeast England. She employed ethnographic and ecological methods to examine the relational, cultural and ecological significance of wild food plants in coastal landscapes in Kent.

Holly Harris is a member of the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology.

Dr Harris is interested in the role that local or indigenous knowledge plays in adapting to environmental change, the diversity of human experiences of nature, and how environmental change affects cultures and communities. This involves understanding local knowledge and practices through qualitative approaches to knowledge production, engaging with stakeholders, and developing strategies that reflect the unique needs and values of each community and place.

SACO3080 - Academic and Research Skills (module convenor)
WCON3101 - Wildlife Conservation and Management (module convenor)
WCON3050 - Biodiversity
WCON5050 - Key Issues in Conservation Science (module convenor)
GEOG5007 - Geographies of Development and the Global South
GEOG5002 - Critical Approaches in Geography

Fellow of The Higher Education Academy