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Faculty Profile
David Sonnenfeld

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David Sonnenfeld

Emeritus

Department of Environmental Studies
214 Baker Laboratory

dsonn@esf.edu
315-470-4931

Mailing address: 106 Marshall Hall, SUNY-ESF, 1 Forestry Dr., Syracuse, NY 13210-2787
Messages:  +1 (315) 464-0084 (voice/ text); Instagram: @DASonnenfeld

Office hours: by appointment

Affiliations

Education

  • S.V. Ciriacy-Wantrup Postdoctoral Fellow, Environmental Policy, University of California at Berkeley, 1998-2000
  • Ph.D., Sociology, University of California, Santa Cruz, 1996
  • M.A., Sociology, University of California, Santa Cruz, 1991
  • B.A. (Honors College), Independent Scholar, with distinction, University of Oregon, 1973

Research Interests

  • Sociology of environment and natural resources
  • Comparative politics; illiberalism/ authoritarianism
  • Sustainability transitions; environmental peacebuilding
  • Transboundary water governance
  • Africa; the Middle East; East/ Southeast Asia
  • Field, historical, and mixed research methods

Books

  • Taylor, Peter Leigh, and David A. Sonnenfeld, eds. 2018. Water Crises and Governance: Reinventing Collaborative Institutions in an Era of Uncertainty. London and New York: Routledge. [link] 
  • Lockie, Stewart, David A. Sonnenfeld, and Dana R. Fisher, eds. 2014. Routledge International Handbook of Social and Environmental Change. London and New York: Routledge. [link]
  • Oosterveer, Peter, and David A. Sonnenfeld. 2012. Food, Globalization and Sustainability. London and New York: Earthscan/ Routledge. [link]
  • Mol, Arthur P.J., David A. Sonnenfeld, and Gert Spaargaren, eds. 2009. The Ecological Modernisation Reader: Environmental Reform in Theory and Practice. London and New York: Routledge. [link]
  • Smith, Ted, David A. Sonnenfeld, and David N. Pellow, eds. 2006. Challenging the Chip: Labor Rights and Environmental Justice in the Global Electronics Industry. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. [link]
  • Mol, Arthur P.J., and David A. Sonnenfeld, eds. 2000. Ecological Modernisation around the World: Perspectives and Critical Debates. London and Portland, Oregon: Frank Cass/ Taylor & Francis. [link]

Symposia

  • Matose, Frank; Fonjong, Lotsmart; and David A. Sonnenfeld, eds. 2025. Special Issue on "Conservation, Natural Resources, and Equitable Outcomes in Africa," Society & Natural Resources, Vol. 38, No. 4 (April) [link]
  • Fonjong, Lotsmart; Frank Matose; and David A. Sonnenfeld, eds. 2024. Special Issue on "Climate Change Adaptation and Policy Response in Africa," Global Environmental Change (December) [link]
  • Sonnenfeld, David A., and Peter Leigh Taylor, eds. 2018. Special Issue on "Society and Natural Resources in an Illiberal World," Society & Natural Resources, Vol. 31, No. 5 (May) [link]
  • Taylor, Peter Leigh, and David A. Sonnenfeld, eds. 2017. Special Issue on "Water Crises & Institutions: Governance Challenges in an Era of Uncertainty," Society & Natural Resources, Vol. 30, No. 4 (April) [link]
  • Sonnenfeld, David A., and Arthur P.J. Mol, eds. 2011. Symposium on "Social Theory and the Environment in the New World (dis)Order", Global Environmental Change, Vol. 21, No. 3 (August) [link]
  • Sonnenfeld, David A., ed. 2008. Special Issue on "Globalisation and Environmental Governance," Global Environmental Change, Vol. 18, No. 3 (August) [link]
  • Sonnenfeld, David A., and Stewart Lockie, eds. 2008. Special Issue on "Communities, Natural Resources, and Environments," Local Environment, Vol. 13, No. 5 (July) [link]
  • Sonnenfeld, David A., and Arthur P.J. Mol, eds. 2006. Special Issue on "Environmental Reform in Asia," The Journal of Environment and Development, Vol. 15, No. 2 (June) [link]
  • Sonnenfeld, David A., and Arthur P.J. Mol, eds. 2002. Special Issue on "Globalization, Governance, and the Environment," American Behavioral Scientist, Vol. 45, No. 9 (May) [link]

Recent Articles & Chapters

  • Oh, Youngmin, and David A. Sonnenfeld. 2025. "New Possibilities for Climate Action in East Asia? The Role of Non-State Actors in China, South Korea, and Japan.” In The Oxford Handbook of Climate Action, ed. Paul Almeida. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780197762097.013.0027.
  • Matose, Frank, Lotsmart Fonjong, and David A. Sonnenfeld. 2025. "Protecting and Benefitting from Nature: Insights and Policy Dilemmas from Africa," Society & Natural Resources, Vol. 38, No. 4 (April). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/08941920.2025.2466171.
  • Fonjong, Lotsmart, Frank Matose, and David A. Sonnenfeld. 2024. “Climate Change in Africa: Impacts, Adaptation, and Policy Responses,” Global Environmental Change 89 (December). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2024.102912. 
  • Quigley, Dianne, David A. Sonnenfeld, Phil Brown, and Tracie Ferreira. 2022. “Redefining Ethics and Ethics Research Directions for Environmental Studies/ Sciences from Student Evaluations,” Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences 12 (December): 739-755. [link]

Recent Graduate Theses

Ph.D.

  • Loeffelholz, Marie, "From a Human-only Perspective to an Inclusive Approach through Intrinsic Identity and Future-Oriented Concepts: Conceptualizations of Rivers in Three International River Basin Organizations," Environmental Science (Environmental and Natural Resources Policy), ESF, 2023 (co-chair)
  • Kedem, Rina, "Landscapes of Cold Peace. Post-conflict Environmental Cooperation: Israel and Jordan," Faculty of Social Science, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel, 2022
  • Ekoh, Susan, "Vulnerabilities, Flood Risk Perceptions, and Future Migration Intentions among Coastal Residents of Lagos, Nigeria," Environmental Science (Environmental and Natural Resources Policy), ESF, 2021
  • Song, Jongdae, "A Holistic Approach to Analyzing the Effectiveness of Government-sponsored Voluntary Environmental Programs: Evidence from Manufacturing Industries in South Korea, 2005-2017," Environmental Science (Environmental and Natural Resources Policy, ESF, 2021 (co-chair)
  • Fuentes Viera, Kaira T.,"The Role of Community-based Organizations in Natural Disaster Recovery and Community Resilience: A Case Study of El Grupo de las Ocho Comunidades Aledañas al Caño Martín Peña, San Juan, Puerto Rico," Environmental Science (Environmental and Community Land Planning), ESF, 2021 (co-chair)
  • Hill, Dustin T., "Toxic Procurement: An Examination of United States Federal Government Contracts, Disproportionality, and Firm Environmental Performance, 2001-2012," Environmental Science (Environmental and Natural Resources Policy), ESF, 2021

M.Sc.

  • Finocchiaro, Grace, "Between International Priorities and Local Realities: The Complex Social-Political Landscape of Marine Turtle Conservation in El Salvador," Environmental Studies (Environmental Policy), ESF, 2023 (co-chair)
  • Minnick, Danielle, "Drinking Water Vulnerability Mapping: PFOA Contamination in Hoosick Falls, New York," Environmental Science (Water and Wetland Resource Studies), ESF, 2021 (chair)
  • Romero Fernández, Moory M., "Intercultural and Spiritual Approach to Water and Power in the Communitarian State of Bolivia in Times of Climate Change and Political Transformation," Environmental Studies (Environmental Policy), ESF, 2021 (co-chair)

Professional Associations