Dr. Zhao Ma
Professor and Lead Researcher
I am a Professor of Natural Resource Social Science. As a natural resource social scientist, the overarching goal of my research is to contribute to knowledge that improves individual and organizational capacity to make natural resource decisions to adapt to social-ecological change at various scales. Specifically, my research lies at the intersection of political ecology and social psychology, and examines natural resource decision making processes of two types of actors, individuals and organizations. I ask questions about (1) how individuals and organizations perceive social-ecological changes and the associated natural resource challenges at various scales, (2) how individuals and organizations respond to social-ecological changes and address the associated natural resource challenges, (3) how various ecological, climatic, social, economic, political, and cultural factors influence decision making by individuals and within organizations, and (4) what intended and unintended impacts may result from individual and organizational natural resource decisions. Broadly speaking, my research provides insights into what information, assistance, and incentives may be helpful for promoting sustainable natural resource decisions by individuals, and how individual attitudes and behaviors across the landscape and over time cumulatively affect the effectiveness of various natural resource policies and programs.
I have been at Purdue since 2013, and was previously on faculty at Utah State University. I was a post-doctoral fellow in the Family Forest Research Center at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. I obtained my Ph.D. in Natural Resource Science and Management from the University of Minnesota, M.A. in Sustainable International Development from Brandeis University, and BS in Material Physics from the University of Science and Technology Beijing. I feel very lucky to have had the opportunities to work with so many great scholars, students and practitioners, who have greatly shaped my thinking about the social-ecological world we all live in and my pursuit of natural resource social science research.
Erica Kronenberger
Research Coordinator
Erica is the Research Coordinator for the Human Dimensions Lab. She manages daily operations for the lab, and she is also involved in research projects. Currently, Erica leads a project focused on public perceptions of forest management practices in Indiana, and she is also assisting with a project that examines opportunities for collective action with invasive plant management in the Suisun Marsh.
Education:
M.S. in Geography and Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma (2024)
B.A. in Environmental Sustainability, University of Oklahoma (2021)
Rebekah Dickens Ohara
Graduate Student
Rebekah is pursuing a PhD in Natural Resource Social Science. Rebekah's research supports the development of a community managed forest in North Kona and explores institutional best practices in collaboratively managed terrestrial systems. Specifically, Rebekah will perform a political ecology analysis of stewardship networks in North Kona and South Kohala, Hawai‘i Island through Stewardship Mapping and Assessment (STEW-MAP).
Education:
- M.A. in Social Science, Environment and Community, Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA (2013)
- B.A. in Anthropology, Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA (2009)
- Teaching License, Chaminade University, Honolulu, HI (2014)a
Nathan Shoaf
Graduate Student
Nathan is pursuing a PhD in Natural Resource Social Science. He is also part of the Interdisciplinary Ecological Sciences & Engineering (
Education:
- M.S. in Ecological Science and Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
- B.S. in English Literature, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN
Mary Strickland
Graduate Student
Mary is pursuing a PhD in Natural Resource Social Science. She is also part of the Interdisciplinary Ecological Sciences & Engineering (ESE) Graduate Program. In 2022, Mary was awarded a prestigious Margaret A. Davidson Graduate Fellowship by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Mary’s dissertation research determines the barriers to and opportunities for conservation-oriented adaptations and pro-environmental behaviors for coastal communities in Rhode Island. This research is in collaboration with the Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, and it will be used to highlight areas within coastal community resilience education and outreach programs that can be improved to facilitate higher levels of participation.
Education:
- M.S. in Biology at Georgia Southern University (2015)
- B.S. in Wildlife at Purdue University (2013)
Nate Johnson
Post-doctoral Research Associate
Nate earned his master's and Ph.D. in the Brian Lamb School of Communication at Purdue University, and his research has centered around decision-making and technology adoption in both environmental and media contexts. He is interested in social science themes related to social and group identity, trust, and consequences of technology.
As a postdoc, he is now working from a social science perspective on a project related to assisted migration as a forest management strategy and with the digital forestry project in their efforts to map tree populations.
Education:
Ph.D. in Interpersonal Communication, Purdue University (2024)
M.A. in Interpersonal Communication, Purdue University (2020)
B.A. in Communication, Bob Jones University (2018)
Katy Dix
Graduate Student
Katy Dix is a Purdue Doctoral Fellow pursuing a Ph.D. in Natural Resource Social Science. She is Guatemalan-American and works with rural communities in Latin America on social-environmental initiatives geared at fostering well-being and protecting the people and places they call home.
Project Description: Katy studies collaborative wildfire management in the Indigenous Territory of Monteverde in Bolivia. She partners with community members and leaders, NGOs, local government officials to assess best practices for building bridges between different knowledge systems and promoting effective collaboration between Indigenous and external entities on integrated wildfire and watershed management. Her work draws inspiration from the fields of environmental justice, anticolonial studies, political ecology, and critical and post- development studies.
Education:
M.A. in Sustainable International Development, Brandeis University (2021)
B.A. in Political Science and Environmental Studies, Williams College (2018)
Teresa Paniagua
Graduate Student
Teresa is an Environmental Engineer with a Bachelor's degree from the National University of Asuncion, Paraguay, where she graduated with honors. She is currently advancing her expertise through a Fulbright scholarship, pursuing a Master of Science in Ecological Science and Engineering at Purdue University. Teresa's extensive professional experience includes work as a consultant, monitoring land use changes and analyzing satellite data for environmental assessments. She has contributed to critical national projects in Paraguay, including the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) update process and solid waste characterization studies in Paraguay, collaborating with international bodies like the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). Additionally, she has authored publications on the spatial distribution of precipitation and drought in Paraguay, exemplifying her commitment to advancing environmental sustainability and climate resilience through innovative research and collaborative efforts.
Education:
B.S., National University of Asuncion (2019)