Geography

Professor Patrick Devine-Wright

Professor Patrick Devine-Wright

Professor in Human Geography

 P.G.Devine-Wright@exeter.ac.uk

 2298

 Amory C358

 

Amory Building, University of Exeter, Rennes Drive, Exeter, EX4 4RJ , UK

Overview

Patrick Devine-Wright's research has been ranked in the world's top 1% of social science according to citation of publications in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022. With expertise spanning Human Geography and Environmental Psychology, he conducts theoretically-driven research with real-world implications, often in interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary settings. Active across local, national and international contexts, he is engaged in efforts to ensure social science insights inform decision making on a range of environmental challenges, notably climate change. 

Patrick is Director of the new £6.25m ACCESS (Advancing Capacity in Climate and Environment Social Science) leadership team for environmental social science funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. Until 2027, ACCESS will work to increase the co-ordination and visibility of social science research through outreach and close relationships with stakeholders and policy makers across the UK and internationally.

Broad research specialisms:

  • investigating social and psychological aspects of energy transitions, in particular siting controversies, 'NIMBYism’, public participation and community engagement.
  • understanding people's relationships with place and landscape, particularly concepts of place attachment and place identity.
  • understanding how the public are imagined and engaged with by policy makers and industry in relation to energy and environmental problems - for example as users, consumers and citizens.

He was a Lead Author for the IPCC Working Group III in the 6th Asessment Round contributing to a chapter on 'Demand, Services and Social Aspects of Mitigation'. From 2019-2022, he was Chair of the Devon Net Zero Task Force and has been a Board Member, including Chair for one year, of Exeter Community Energy. He contributes to the International Energy Agency's Task 28 on Social Acceptance of Wind Energy, has been a member of the National Advisory Group for EirGrid (the Irish electricity grid operator) since 2013 and advises the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland on the Irish Government's Renewable Energy Strategy.

He is a member of the Peer Review Group for the Department for Business, Enterprise and Industrial Strategy; and was formerly a member of the Social Science Expert Panel advising Defra and DECC. He was an invited member of the National Advisory Group steering the UK Community Renewables Initiative between 2001 and 2006; and acted as Lead Expert to the Office of Science and Technology’s Foresight Project on Sustainable Energy and the Built Environment (2008).

He sits on the board of several academic journals including Global Environmental Change, Energy Research and Social Science, the Journal of Environmental Psychology, and Environment and Behavior. He edited a book on ‘Public Engagement with Renewable Energy: From NIMBY to Participation' published by Earthscan in 2011. A book on 'Place Attachment', co-edited with Prof. Lynne Manzo (University of Washington) won the annual Achievement Award from the US Environmental Design Research Association in 2014, with an updated second edition published in 2021.

Institutional memberships

Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society

Chartered Environmental Psychologist and member of the British Psychological Society

International Association for People-Environment Studies

Qualifications

BSc Psychology (Trinity College, Dublin),
MSc in Environmental Psychology (Surrey),
PhD in Social Psychology (Surrey)

Research group links

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Research

Research projects

Project Windy Isle, funded by the States of Guernsey Government on Stakeholder and Public Engagement with Offshore Wind Energy

Community Funds, collaborative research with EirGrid, the grid operator in the Republic of Ireland on the distribution of funds to communities affected by the siting of overhead power lines

Previous research grant awards

Engineering Low Carbon Coasts (EPSRC funding, with Dr. Karen Bickerstaff; Dr. Lars Johanning; Dr. Mat White and Prof. Kevin Gaston)

Public acceptance of high voltage power lines (ESRC funded PhD studentship, in collaboration with the National Grid plc., 2013-2016)

Public engagement and acceptance of marine renewable energy: a Guernsey case study (ESRC funded PhD studentship, in collaboration with the Guernsey Government, 2012-2015)

EU-Trace: European Trans-disciplinary Assessment of Climate Engineering (ERC, FP7, 2012-2014)

Sustainable Grid Development: addressing the need to integrate economic, social and environmental concerns (funded by the Norwegian Research Council, 2011-2014)

Conditioning Demand: Older people, diversity and thermal experience (funded by EPSRC and EDF under the People Energy and Buildings Programme (2011-2013)

Challenging Lock-in through Urban Energy Systems (CLUES), funded by EPSRC funder the Sustainable Urban Environments programme (2011-2012)

Supergen FlexNet. (funded by the EPSRC under the Supergen programme, 2007-2012)

Beyond Nimbyism: Towards a multidisciplinary framework for understanding public engagement with renewable energy technologies ESRC/Research Council's Energy Programme, 125k of 500k, 2005-2009, Principle Investigator. This project was evaluated as 'outstanding' in the end of grant peer review by ESRC.

EU Framework 7, ADDRESS (Active distribution networks with full integration of demand and distributed energy resources),
300k of 7 million Euros, 2008-2011, Co-investigator.

Bruntwood Institute for Sustainable Cities,
£650k of £940k, 2007-2010, Co-investigator.

EPSRC, 'FlexNet', renewal of Future Network Technologies project (see below),
£625k of £7m, 2007-2011,  Co-investigator.

ESRC, under Towards a Sustainable Energy Economy research programme: "Beyond Nimbyism: Towards a multidisciplinary framework for understanding public engagement with renewable energy technologies".
£135k of £500k, 2005-2009, Principle Investigator.

EPSRC, under Supergen programme: Future Network Technologies.
£255 of £3.5m, 2003-2007, Co-investigator

EPSRC, under Sustainable Urban Environment programme: "City Form".
£400k of £2m, 2003-2007, Co-investigator.

ESRC, under Sustainable Technologies Programme: Harnessing Community Energies: Embedding Sustainable Energy Technologies at the local level.
£80k of £135k, 2004-2006, Co-investigator.

EU 5th Framework: INTUSER: Public attitudes to Energy Resources project funded by EU Framework 5.
£28K, 2002-2004, Co-investigator

EPSRC, under Partnerships for Public Understanding programme: Activity Based Sustainable Energy Futures.
£36K, 2002-2004, Co-investigator

EPSRC responsive mode: Evaluation & Dissemination of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Modelling In UK Local Authorities.
£62K, 2002-2003, Co-investigator

EU LIFE Programme: Making News: Community Sustainable Development Indicators" project.
£26K, 2002-2003, Co-investigator

Research networks

Membership of external committees (including peer review colleges)

Journal Editorial Roles

I am on the Editorial Boards of the following journals: Global Environmental Change, Energy Research and Social Science, Local Environment and Environment and Behaviour. I acted as Guest editor for a special issue of the Journal of Environmental Psychology on Place and Identity in 2009-2010.

Advisory Panel Roles:

  • Jury Member, Renewables Grid Initiative Best Pratice of the Year awards (2014+)
  • National Advisory Panel on Community Engagement for EirGrid, the Irish electricity system operator (2013+).
  • DECC/DEFRA Social Science Expert Panel (2012+).
  • International Science Panel on Renewable Energy (2005-2008).
  • National Advisory Group steering the Countryside Agency’s Community Renewables Initiative (2001-2006).
  • Regional Advisory Group of East Midlands CRI (2002-2005).

Review roles

I am a member of the Peer Review Colleges of the Economic and Social Research Council and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. I have acted as an international reviewer of grant applications for funding agencies in the United States, Canada, Ireland, France, Switzerland and the Netherlands.

I have acted as External Examiner for PhD vivas for the Open University, University of Exeter, Robert Gordon University, Cardiff University, Lancaster University, University of Sheffield, University of Melbourne and the University of South Australia.

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Publications

Books

Devine-Wright P (eds)(2011). Renewable Energy and the Public: from Nimby to Participation. London, UK, Earthscan. Abstract.  Author URL.
Devine-Wright P (eds)(2010). Renewable Energy and the Public., Earthscan / James & James. Abstract.  Author URL.

Journal articles

Batel SA, Devine-Wright P (In Press). (in press). A critical and empirical analysis of the national-local ‘gap’in public responses to large-scale energy infrastructures. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management Abstract.
Cox D, Hudson H, Plummer K, Siriwardena G, Anderson K, Hancock S, Devine-Wright P, Gaston KJ (In Press). Covariation in urban birds providing cultural services or disservices and people. Journal of Applied Ecology
Devine-Wright P (In Press). Expanding the Role for Psychology in Addressing Environmental Challenges.
Devine-Wright P, Bickerstaff K, Butler C (In Press). Living with low carbon technologies: an agenda for sharing and comparing qualitative energy research. Energy Policy Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (In Press). Local perceptions of opportunities for engagement and procedural justice in electricity transmission grid projects in Norway and the UK.
Cotton M, Devine-Wright P (In Press). Making electricity networks ‘visible’: industry actor constructions of ‘publics’ and public engagement in infrastructure planning. Public Understanding of Science Abstract.  Author URL.
Goedkoop F, Devine-Wright P (In Press). Partnership or placation? the role of Trust and Justice in the Shared Ownership of Renewable Energy Projects. Energy Research & Social Science. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Whitmarsh L, Gaterslaben B, O’Neill S, Hartley S, Burningham K, Sovacool B, Barr S, Anable J (In Press). Placing people at the heart of climate action. PLOS Climate
Devine-Wright P (In Press). Psychological Research and Global Climate Change. Nature Climate Change
Bruegger A, Dessai S, Devine-Wright P, Morton TA, Pidgeon N (In Press). Psychological responses to the proximity of climate change. Nature Climate Change
Batel SA, Devine-Wright P (In Press). Towards a better understanding of people's responses to renewable energy technologies: Insights from Social Representations Theory. Public Understanding of Science Abstract.
Ratcliffe E, Ogunbode C, Wilkie S, Jones CR, Devine-Wright P, Uzzell D, Canter D, Korpela K, Pinto de Carvalho L, Staats H, et al (2024). On the importance of qualitative research in environmental psychology. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 93
Devine-Wright P, Ryder S (2024). Place-based reflexivity for just energy social science. Nature Energy, 9(1), 1-5.
Devine-Wright P, Peacock A (2024). Putting energy infrastructure into place: a systematic review. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 197, 114272-114272.
Walker C, Rowlands IH, Devine-Wright P, Soutar I, Wilson C, Gupta R, Devine-Wright H, Bishwokarma J, Ford R (2024). The “four Ds” and support for Local Smart Grids: analysis from national surveys in the UK and Canada. Oxford Open Energy, 3 Abstract.
Ryder S, Walker C, Batel S, Devine-Wright H, Devine-Wright P, Sherry-Brennan F (2023). Do the ends justify the means? Problematizing social acceptance and instrumentally-driven community engagement in proposed energy projects. Socio-Ecological Practice Research, 5(2), 189-204. Abstract.
Bartie P, Varley A, Dickie J, Evensen D, Devine-Wright P, Ryder S, Whitmarsh L, Foad C (2023). Great Britain's spatial twitter activity related to ‘fracking’. Computers Environment and Urban Systems, 103
Evensen D, Whitmarsh L, Devine-Wright P, Dickie J, Bartie P, Foad C, Bradshaw M, Ryder S, Mayer A, Varley A, et al (2023). Growing importance of climate change beliefs for attitudes towards gas. Nature Climate Change, 13(3), 240-243.
Gooding L, Devine-Wright P, Rohse M, Ford R, Walker C, Soutar I, Devine-Wright H (2023). The best-laid plans: Tracing public engagement change in emergent Smart Local Energy Systems. Energy Research & Social Science, 101
Ryder SS, Dickie JA, Devine-Wright P (2023). “Do you Know What's Underneath your Feet?”: Underground Landscapes &amp; Place-Based Risk Perceptions of Proposed Shale Gas Sites in Rural British Communities<sup>☆</sup>. Rural Sociology, 88(4), 1131-1162. ☆' data-abstract='Resource extraction relies on human interaction with the underground, often near rural communities. Yet, little research has explored localized, place-based relationships to the underground and subsequent concerns tied to proposed energy activities. This paper highlights the importance of place in localized risk perceptions of proposed shale exploration in two rural communities in the United Kingdom. Through qualitative case studies we examine how senses of place and place-based knowledges are shaped by underground landscapes. Further, we explore how these inform local risk perceptions of shale gas exploration. Our findings demonstrate how senses of place and place-based knowledges in each community are embedded in local rural culture that stretches back multiple generations, and are at least in part rooted in human connections to, and understanding of, the subsurface. Connections between surface and underground aspects of places create concerns about distinctiveness, which heighten residents' perceptions of more generalized shale gas risks. The research findings broaden our understanding of how places encompass both surface and underground landscapes, with significant implications for risk perceptions in energy contexts. These findings raise important questions for incorporating place-based and plural sets of knowledge in risk management and decision-making for future underground energy projects that contribute to net-zero strategies.' onclick='modalCall(this);return false;'>Abstract.
Soutar I, Devine-Wright P, Rohse M, Walker C, Gooding L, Devine-Wright H, Kay I (2022). Constructing practices of engagement with users and communities: Comparing emergent state-led smart local energy systems. Energy Policy, 171, 113279-113279.
Devine-Wright P (2022). Decarbonisation of industrial clusters: a place-based research agenda. Energy Research and Social Science, 91 Abstract.
Evensen D, Varley A, Whitmarsh L, Devine-Wright P, Dickie J, Bartie P, Napier H, Mosca I, Foad C, Ryder S, et al (2022). Effect of linguistic framing and information provision on attitudes towards induced seismicity and seismicity regulation. Scientific Reports, 12(1).
Ryder SS, Devine-Wright P (2022). Environmental justice implications and conceptual advancements: community experiences of proposed shale gas exploration in the UK. Environmental Politics, 31(7), 1161-1181. Abstract.
Bradshaw M, Devine-Wright P, Evensen D, King O, Martin A, Ryder S, Short D, Sovacool BK, Stretesky P, Szolucha A, et al (2022). ‘We're going all out for shale:’ explaining shale gas energy policy failure in the United Kingdom. Energy Policy, 168, 113132-113132.
Roux J-P, Fitch-Roy O, Devine-Wright P, Ellis G (2022). “We could have been leaders”: the rise and fall of offshore wind energy on the political agenda in Ireland. Energy Research & Social Science, 92, 102762-102762.
Itten A, Sherry-Brennan F, Hoppe T, Sundaram A, Devine-Wright P (2021). Co-creation as a social process for unlocking sustainable heating transitions in Europe. Energy Research and Social Science, 74 Abstract.
Sandover R, Moseley A, Devine-Wright P (2021). Contrasting Views of Citizens’ Assemblies: Stakeholder Perceptions of Public Deliberation on Climate Change. Politics and Governance, 9(2), 76-86. Abstract.
Evensen D, Whitmarsh L, Bartie P, Dickie J, Devine-Wright P, Varley A, Ryder S, Mayer A (2021). Effect of “finite pool of worry” and COVID-19 on UK climate change perceptions. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(3). Abstract.
Bailey E, Devine‐Wright P, Batel S (2021). Emplacing linked lives: a qualitative approach to understanding the co‐evolution of residential mobility and place attachment formation over time. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 31(5), 515-529. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Ryder S, Dickie J, Evensen D, Varley A, Whitmarsh L, Bartie P (2021). Induced seismicity or political ploy?: Using a novel mix of methods to identify multiple publics and track responses over time to shale gas policy change. Energy Research and Social Science, 81 Abstract.
Chateau Z, Devine-Wright P, Wills J (2021). Integrating sociotechnical and spatial imaginaries in researching energy futures. Energy Research and Social Science, 80 Abstract.
Kallis G, Stephanides P, Bailey E, Devine-Wright P, Chalvatzis K, Bailey I (2021). The challenges of engaging island communities: Lessons on renewable energy from a review of 17 case studies. Energy Research and Social Science, 81 Abstract.
Walker C, Devine-Wright P, Rohse M, Gooding L, Devine-Wright H, Gupta R (2021). What is ‘local’ about Smart Local Energy Systems? Emerging stakeholder geographies of decentralised energy in the United Kingdom. Energy Research & Social Science, 80, 102182-102182.
Baxter J, Walker C, Ellis G, Devine-Wright P, Adams M, Fullerton RS (2020). Scale, history and justice in community wind energy: an empirical review. Energy Research & Social Science, 68, 101532-101532.
Devine-Wright P, Wiersma B (2020). Understanding community acceptance of a potential offshore wind energy project in different locations: an island-based analysis of ‘place-technology fit’. Energy Policy, 137 Abstract.
Batel S, Devine-Wright P (2020). Using NIMBY rhetoric as a political resource to negotiate responses to local energy infrastructure: a power line case study. Local Environment, 25(5), 338-350. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Pinto de Carvalho L, Di Masso A, Lewicka M, Manzo L, Williams DR (2020). “Re-placed” - Reconsidering relationships with place and lessons from a pandemic. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 72, 101514-101514.
Devine-Wright P (2019). Between fixities and flows: Navigating place attachments in an increasingly mobile world. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 61, 125-133.
Creamer E, Taylor Aiken G, van Veelen B, Walker G, Devine-Wright P (2019). Community renewable energy: What does it do? Walker and Devine-Wright (2008) ten years on. Energy Research & Social Science, 57, 101223-101223.
Devine-Wright P (2019). Community versus local energy in a context of climate emergency. Nature Energy, 4(11), 894-896.
Brown K, Adger WN, Devine-Wright P, Anderies JM, Barr S, Bousquet F, Butler C, Evans L, Marshall N, Quinn T, et al (2019). Empathy, place and identity interactions for sustainability. Global Environmental Change, 56, 11-17. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Sherry-Brennan F (2019). Where do you draw the line? Legitimacy and fairness in constructing community benefit fund boundaries for energy infrastructure projects. Energy Research and Social Science, 54, 166-175.
Devine-Wright P, Smith J, Batel S (2019). “Positive parochialism”, local belonging and ecological concerns: Revisiting Common Ground's Parish Maps project. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 44(2), 407-421. Abstract.
Cowell R, Devine-Wright P (2018). A ‘delivery-democracy dilemma’? Mapping and explaining policy change for public engagement with energy infrastructure. Journal of Environmental Policy and Planning, 20(4), 499-517. Abstract.
Perlaviciute G, Schuitema G, Devine-Wright P, Ram B (2018). At the heart of a sustainable energy transition: the public acceptability of energy projects. IEEE Power and Energy Magazine, 16(1), 49-55. Abstract.
Batel S, Devine-Wright P (2018). Populism, identities and responses to energy infrastructures at different scales in the United Kingdom: a post-Brexit reflection. Energy Research and Social Science, 43, 41-47. Abstract.
Bauwens T, Devine-Wright P (2018). Positive energies? an empirical study of community energy participation and attitudes to renewable energy. Energy Policy, 118, 612-625. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Batel S, Aas O, Sovacool B, LaBelle MC, Ruud A (2017). A conceptual framework for understanding the social acceptance of energy infrastructure: Insights from energy storage. Energy Policy, 107, 27-31. Abstract.
Batel S, Devine-Wright P (2017). Energy Colonialism and the Role of the Global in Local Responses to New Energy Infrastructures in the UK: a Critical and Exploratory Empirical Analysis. Antipode, 49(1), 3-22. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Batel S (2017). My neighbourhood, my country or my planet? the influence of multiple place attachments and climate change concern on social acceptance of energy infrastructure. Global Environmental Change, 47, 110-120. Abstract.
Clayton S, Carrico A, Steg L, Swim JK, Bonnes M, Devine-Wright P (2017). Psychologists and the problem of population growth: Reply to Bridgeman (2017). American Psychologist, 72(4), 388-389. Abstract.
Batel S, Castro P, Devine-Wright P, Howarth C (2016). Developing a critical agenda to understand pro-environmental actions: contributions from Social Representations and Social Practices Theories. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change, 7(5), 727-745. Abstract.
Batel S, Castro P, Devine‐Wright P, Howarth C (2016). Developing a critical agenda to understand pro‐environmental actions: contributions from Social Representations and Social Practices Theories. WIREs Climate Change, 7(6), 932-932.
Bailey E, Devine-Wright P, Batel S (2016). Understanding responses to a uk high-voltage powerline proposal: the role of place and project-based social representations. Papers on Social Representations, 25(1), 2.1-2.24. Abstract.
Bailey E, Devine-Wright P, Batel S (2016). Using a narrative approach to understand place attachments and responses to power line proposals: the importance of life-place trajectories. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 48, 200-211. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2015). Local attachments and identities. Progress in Human Geography, 39(4), 527-530.
Devine-Wright P, Price J, Leviston Z (2015). My country or my planet? Exploring the influence of multiple place attachments and ideological beliefs upon climate change attitudes and opinions. Global Environmental Change, 30, 68-79. Abstract.
Walker I, Leviston Z, Price J, Devine-Wright P (2015). Responses to a worsening environment: relative deprivation mediates between place attachments and behaviour. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, 45(7), 833-846.  Author URL.
Rydin Y, Guy S, Goodier C, Chmutina K, Devine-Wright P, Wiersma B (2015). The financial entanglements of local energy projects. Geoforum, 59, 1-11. Abstract.
Batel S, Devine-Wright P, Wold L, Egeland H, Jacobsen G, Aas O (2015). The role of (de-)essentialisation within siting conflicts: an interdisciplinary approach. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 44, 149-159.
Wrapson W, Devine-Wright P (2014). 'Domesticating' low carbon thermal technologies: Diversity, multiplicity and variability in older person, off grid households. Energy Policy, 67, 807-817. Abstract.
Chmutina K, Wiersma B, Goodier CI, Devine-Wright P (2014). Concern or compliance? Drivers of urban decentralised energy initiatives. Sustainable Cities and Society, 10, 122-129. Abstract.
Wiersma B, Devine-Wright P (2014). Decentralising energy: comparing the drivers and influencers of projects led by public, private, community and third sector actors. Contemporary Social Science, 9(4), 456-470. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Wrapson W, Henshaw V, Guy S (2014). Low carbon heating and older adults: Comfort, cosiness and glow. Building Research and Information, 42(3), 288-299. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2014). Planning and Place in the City: Mapping Place Identity, Marichela Sepe. International Development Planning Review, 36(4), 509-511.
Aas Ø, Devine-Wright P, Tangeland T, Batel S, Ruud A (2014). Public beliefs about high-voltage powerlines in Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom: a comparative survey. Energy Research and Social Science, 2, 30-37. Abstract.
Wiersma B, Devine-Wright P (2014). Public engagement with offshore renewable energy: a critical review. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS-CLIMATE CHANGE, 5(4), 493-507.  Author URL.
Devine-Wright P, Batel S (2013). Explaining public preferences for high voltage power lines: an empirical study of perceived fit in a rural landscape. Land Use Policy, 31, 640-649.
Devine-Wright P, Batel S (2013). Explaining public preferences for high voltage pylon designs: an empirical study of perceived fit in a rural landscape. Land Use Policy, 31, 640-649. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2013). Explaining ‘NIMBY’ objections to a power line: the role of personal, place attachment and project-related factors. Environment and Behavior, 45, 761-781.
Devine-Wright P, Wiersma B (2013). Opening up the "local" to analysis: Exploring the spatiality of UK urban decentralised energy initiatives. Local Environment, 18(10), 1099-1116. Abstract.
Cotton M, Devine-Wright P (2013). Putting pylons into place: a UK case study of public perspectives on the impacts of high voltage overhead transmission lines. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 56(8), 1225-1245. Abstract.
Batel S, Devine-Wright P, Tangeland T (2013). Social acceptance of low carbon energy and associated infrastructures: a critical discussion. Energy Policy, 58, 1-5. Abstract.
Batel S, Devine-Wright P, Tangeland T (2013). Social acceptance of low carbon energy and associated infrastructures: a critical discussion. Energy Policy, 58, 1-5. Abstract.
Hall N, Ashworth P, Devine-Wright P (2013). Societal acceptance of wind farms: Analysis of four common themes across Australian case studies. Energy Policy, 58, 200-208. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2013). Think global, act local? the relevance of place attachments and place identities in a climate changed world. Global Environmental Change, 23, 61-69. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2013). Understanding NIMBYism. International Water Power and Dam Construction, 65(5), 38-40. Abstract.
Irvine KN, Warber SL, Devine-Wright P, Gaston KJ (2013). Understanding Urban Green Space as a Health Resource: a Qualitative Comparison of Visit Motivation and Derived Effects among Park Users in Sheffield, UK. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH, 10(1), 417-442.  Author URL.
Bailey E, Devine-Wright P (2013). Varieties of people-place relations and place change: UK electricity transmission grid development. ESTUDIOS DE PSICOLOGIA, 34(3), 335-338.  Author URL.
Cotton M, Devine-Wright P (2012). Making electricity networks ‘visible’: industry actor constructions of ‘publics’ and public engagement in infrastructure planning. Public Understanding of Science, 21, 17-35.
Barr S, Devine-Wright P (2012). Resilient Communities: sustainabilities in transition. Local Environment, 17, 525-532.
Barr SW, Devine-Wright P (2012). Resilient Communities: transforming sustainabilities. Local Environment, 17(5), 525-532.
Buijs A, Hovardas T, Figari H, Castro P, Devine-Wright P, Fischer A, Mouro C, Selge S (2012). Understanding People's Ideas on Natural Resource Management: Research on Social Representations of Nature. Society and Natural Resources, 25(11), 1167-1181. Abstract.
Cotton M, Devine-Wright P (2011). Discourses of energy infrastructure development: a Q-method study of electricity transmission line siting in the UK. ENVIRONMENT AND PLANNING A-ECONOMY AND SPACE, 43(4), 942-960.  Author URL.
Cotton M, Devine-Wright P (2011). Discourses of energy infrastructure development: a Q-method study of electricity transmission line siting in the UK. Environment and Planning A, 4(43), 942-960. Abstract.  Author URL.
Devine-Wright P (2011). Enhancing local distinctiveness fosters public acceptance of tidal energy: a UK case study. Energy Policy(39), 83-93. Abstract.  Author URL.
Devine-Wright P (2011). Place attachment and public acceptance of renewable energy: a tidal energy case study. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 31, 336-343. Abstract.  Author URL.
Devine-Wright P (2011). Public engagement with large-scale renewable energy technologies: breaking the cycle of NIMBYism. WIRES CLIM CHANGE, 2(1), 19-26. Abstract.  Author URL.
Devine-Wright P (2011). Public engagement with large-scale renewable energy: breaking the NIMBY cycle. WIREs Clim Change(2), 19-26.  Author URL.
Rydin Y, Devine-Wright P, Goodier C, Guy S, Hunt L, Watson J (2010). Briefing: Challenging lock-in through urban energy systems. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers: Urban Design and Planning, 163(4), 149-151. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Heath Y (2010). Disruption to place attachment and the protection of restorative environments: a wind energy case study. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 30 Abstract.
Cass N, Walker G, Devine-Wright P (2010). Good Neighbours, Public Relations and Bribes: the Politics and Perceptions of Community Benefit Provision in Renewable Energy Development in the UK. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY & PLANNING, 12(3), 255-275.  Author URL.
Devine-Wright P, Clayton S (2010). Introduction to the special issue: Place, identity and environmental behaviour. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY, 30(3), 267-270.  Author URL.
Sherry-Brennan F, Devine-Wright H, Devine-Wright P (2010). Public Understanding of Hydrogen: a theoretical approach. Energy Policy(38), 5311-5319. Abstract.
Walker G, Devine-Wright P, Hunter S, High H, Evans B (2010). Trust and community: exploring the meanings, contexts and dynamics of community renewable energy. Energy Policy, 2655-2663. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Devine-Wright H, Brennan FS (2010). Visible technologies, invisible organizations: an empirical study of public beliefs about electricity supply networks. Energy Policy, 4127-4134. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Devine-Wright H, Brennan FS (2010). Visible technologies, invisible organizations: an empirical study of public beliefs about electricity supply networks. Energy Policy, 4127-4134. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Sutton J (2009). An energetic approach. PSYCHOLOGIST, 22(2), 116-117.  Author URL.
Agyeman J, Devine-Wright P, Prange J (2009). Close to the edge, down by the river? Joining up managed retreat and place attachment in a climate changed world. ENVIRON PLANN A, 41(3), 509-513. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Irvine K, Payne S, Fuller R, Painter B, Gaston K (2009). Green space, soundscape and urban sustainability: an interdisciplinary,empirical study. Local Environment, 14(2), 155-172. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Devine-Wright H (2009). Public engagement with community-based energy service provision: an exploratory case study. Energy and Environment, 20(3), 303-317. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2009). Rethinking NIMBYism: the Role of Place Attachment and Place Identity in Explaining Place-protective Action. J COMMUNITY APPL SOC, 19(6), 426-441. Abstract.
Devine-Wright H, Devine-Wright P (2009). Social representations of electricity network technologies: exploring processes of anchoring and objectification through the use of visual research methods. Br J Soc Psychol, 48(Pt 2), 357-373. Abstract.
Walker G, Devine-Wright P (2008). Community renewable energy: What should it mean?. ENERGY POLICY, 36(2), 497-500.  Author URL.
Wall R, Devine-Wright P, Mill GA (2008). Interactions between perceived behavioral control and personal-normative motives - Qualitative and quantitative evidence from a study of commuting-mode choice. JOURNAL OF MIXED METHODS RESEARCH, 2(1), 63-86.  Author URL.
Wall R, Devine-Wright P, Mill GA (2007). Comparing and combining theories to explain proenvironmental intentions - the case of commuting-mode choice. ENVIRONMENT AND BEHAVIOR, 39(6), 731-753.  Author URL.
Walker G, Hunter S, Devine-Wright P, Evans B, Fay H (2007). Harnessing community energies: Explaining and evaluating community-based localism in renewable energy policy in the UK. GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLITICS, 7(2), 64-+.  Author URL.
Fuller RA, Irvine KN, Devine-Wright P, Warren PH, Gaston KJ (2007). Psychological benefits of greenspace increase with biodiversity. Biol Lett, 3(4), 390-394. Abstract.  Author URL.
Devine-Wright P, Devine-Wright H (2006). Social representations of intermittency and the shaping of public support for wind energy in the UK. International Journal of Global Energy Issues, 25(3-4), 243-256. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2005). Beyond NIMBYism: Towards an integrated framework for understanding public perceptions of wind energy. Wind Energy, 8(2), 125-139. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2005). Local aspects of UK renewable energy development: Exploring public beliefs and policy implications. Local Environment, 10(1), 57-69. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Devine-Wright H, Fleming P (2004). Situational influences upon children's beliefs about global warming and energy. Environmental Education Research, 10(4), 493-506. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2002). A sociology of energy, buildings and the environment: constructing knowledge, designing practice. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY, 22(4), 415-417.  Author URL.
Devine-Wright P (2001). History and Identity in Northern Ireland: an Exploratory Investigation of the Role of Historical Commemorations in Contexts of Intergroup Conflict. Peace and Conflict Journal of Peace Psychology, 7(4), 297-315.
Devine-Wright P (2001). Identity, memory and the social status of groups in Northern Ireland: Relating processes of social remembering with beliefs about the structure of society. Irish Journal of Psychology, 22(2), 1-21. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Fleming PD, Chadwick H (2001). Role of social capital in advancing regional sustainable development. Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal, 19(2), 161-167. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Lyons E (1997). Remembering pasts and representing places: the construction of national identities in Ireland. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 17(1), 33-45. Abstract.

Chapters

Walker C, Ryder S, Roux J-P, Chateau Z, Devine-Wright P (2023). Chapter 34 Contested scales of democratic decision-making and procedural justice in energy transitions. In  (Ed) Energy Democracies for Sustainable Futures, Elsevier, 317-326.
Walker C, Ryder S, Roux JP, Chateau Z, Devine-Wright P (2022). Contested scales of democratic decision-making and procedural justice in energy transitions. In  (Ed) Energy Democracies for Sustainable futures, 317-326. Abstract.
Sherry-Brennan F, Devine-Wright P, Walker C (2022). Urban energy infrastructure transitions the participation of local citizens in the development of smart local energy systems and sustainable heating. In  (Ed) Routledge Handbook of Urban Landscape Research, 252-264.
Devine-Wright P, Wiersma B (2021). Auto-Photography, Senses of Place and Public Support for Marine Renewable Energy. In  (Ed) Changing Senses of Place, Cambridge University Press (CUP), 144-155.
Manzo LC, Williams DR, Raymond CM, Masso AD, von Wirth T, Devine-Wright P (2021). Navigating the Spaciousness of Uncertainties Posed by Global Challenges. In  (Ed) Changing Senses of Place, Cambridge University Press (CUP), 331-347.
Batel S, Devine-Wright P (2021). Using a Critical Approach to Unpack the Visual-Spatial Impacts of Energy Infrastructures. In  (Ed) A critical approach to the social acceptance of renewable energy infrastructures, Springer Nature, 43-60.
Manzo LC, Devine-Wright P (2020). Introduction. In  (Ed) Place Attachment, Taylor & Francis, 1-10.
Devine-Wright P (2020). Place attachment. In  (Ed) The Routledge Handbook of Place, Taylor & Francis, 506-517.
Devine-Wright P (2018). Environmental Psychology. In Castree N, Hulme M, Longhurst (Eds.) Companion to Environmental Studies, Routledge. Abstract.
Manzo LC, Devine-Wright P (2018). Place attachment. In  (Ed) Environmental Psychology: an Introduction, 135-143. Abstract.
Colton J, Conway F, Wiersma B, Carlson J, Devine-Wright P (2017). Consultation in ocean energy development. In  (Ed) Ocean Energy: Governance Challenges for Wave and Tidal Stream Technologies, 205-228.
Devine‐Wright P (2017). Environment, Democracy, and Public Participation. In  (Ed) International Encyclopedia of Geography, Wiley, 1-10.
Devine-Wright P, Cotton M (2017). Experiencing citizen deliberation over energy infrastructure siting. In  (Ed) The Routledge Research Companion to Energy Geographies, Taylor & Francis, 184-199.
Fleming P, Webber P, Chadwick H, Devine-Wright P (2017). Greenhouse Gas inventory. In  (Ed) Changing by Degrees: the Potential Impacts of Climate Change in the East Midlands, 185-219.
Bickerstaff K, Johnstone P (2017). The re-scaling of energy politics: UK nuclear facility siting in historical context. In  (Ed) The Routledge Research Companion to Energy Geographies, 139-152.
Lenoir-Improta R, Devine-Wright P, Pinheiro JQ, Schweizer-Ries P (2016). Energy Issues: Psychological Aspects. In  (Ed) Handbook of Environmental Psychology and Quality of Life Research, Springer Nature, 543-557.
(2015). Socioeconomic Impacts of Wind Farm Development: a Case Study of Weatherford, Oklahoma. In  (Ed) Wind Resources and Future Energy Security, Taylor & Francis, 181-200.
Devine-Wright P (2014). Conclusions. In  (Ed) Renewable Energy and the Public: from NIMBY to Participation, 317-321.
Cotton M, Devine-Wright P (2014). NIMBYism and community consultation in electricity transmission network planning. In  (Ed) Renewable Energy and the Public: from NIMBY to Participation, 115-128.
Devine-Wright P (2014). Public engagement with renewable energy: Introduction. In  (Ed) Renewable Energy and the Public: from NIMBY to Participation, xxi-xxx.
Sherry-Brennan F, Devine-Wright P, Devine-Wright H (2014). Public engagement with wind-hydrogen technology: a comparative study. In  (Ed) Renewable Energy and the Public: from NIMBY to Participation, 261-274.
Walker G, Devine-Wright P, Barnett J, Burningham K, Cass N, Devine-Wright H, Speller G, Barton J, Evans B, Heath Y, et al (2014). Symmetries, expectations, dynamics and contexts: a framework for understanding public engagement with renewable energy projects. In  (Ed) Renewable Energy and the Public: from NIMBY to Participation, 1-14.
Devine-Wright P (2013). Dynamics of place attachment in a climate changed world. In  (Ed) Place Attachment: Advances in Theory, Methods and Applications, 165-177.
Taji-Farouki S (2013). Introduction. In  (Ed) The Qur'an and its readers in the twentieth century. Qur'an interpretation and translation in global perspective, Oxford: OUP.
Warber S, Irvine K, Devine-Wright P, Gaston K (2013). Modelling well-being and the relationship between individuals and their environments. In  (Ed) Landscape, Well-Being and Environment, 20-37.
Devine-Wright P (2013). Place attachment and the social acceptance or renewable energy technologies. In  (Ed) Psychological Approaches to Sustainability: Current Trends in Theory, Research and Applications, 337-359. Abstract.
Sherry-Brennan F, Devine-Wright P, Devine-Wright H (2013). Public engagement with wind-hydrogen technology: a comparative study. In  (Ed) Renewable Energy and the Public: from NIMBY to Participation, 261-274.
Watson J, Devine-Wright P (2012). Centralization, decentralization and the scales in between: What role might they play in the uk energy system?. In  (Ed) The Future of Electricity Demand: Customers, Citizens and Loads, 280-297. Abstract.
Torriti J, Leach M, Devine-Wright P (2012). Demand-side participation: Price constraints, technical limits and behavioural risks. In  (Ed) The Future of Electricity Demand: Customers, Citizens and Loads, 88-105. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2012). Fostering Public Engagement in Wind Energy Development: the Role of Intermediaries and Community Benefits. In  (Ed) Learning from Wind Power, Springer Nature, 194-214.
Devine-Wright P (2011). From backyards to places: Public engagement and the emplacement of renewable energy technologies. In  (Ed) Renewable Energy and the Public: from NIMBY to Participation, London: Earthscan, 57-70.
Devine-Wright P (2010). Place attachment and the social acceptance of renewable energy technologies. In  (Ed) Psychological Approaches to Sustainability: Current Trends in Theory, Research and Applications, 337-360. Abstract.
Irvine KN, Fuller RA, Devine-Wright P, Tratalos J, Payne SR, Warren PH, Lomas KJ, Gaston KJ (2009). Ecological and Psychological Value of Urban Green Space. In  (Ed) Sustainable City Form, Springer Nature, 215-237.
Devine-Wright P (2008). Reconsidering public acceptance of renewable energy technologies: a critical review. In Grubb M, Jamasb T, Pollitt M (Eds.) Delivering a Low Carbon Electricity System: Technologies, Economics and Policy, Cambridge University Press, 443-461.
Devine-Wright P (2007). Energy citizenship: psychological aspects of evolution in sustainable energy technologies. In  (Ed) Framing the Present, Shaping the Future: Contemporary Governance of Sustainable Technologies, Earthscan, 63-86.
Sherry-Brennan F, Devine-Wright H, Devine-Wright P (2007). Social Representations of Hydrogen Technologies: a Community-Owned Wind-Hydrogen Project. In  (Ed) Risk and the Public Acceptance of New Technologies, Springer Nature, 154-174.
Sherry-Brennan F, Devine-Wright H, Devine-Wright P (2007). Social representations of hydrogen technologies: a community-owned wind-hydrogen project. In  (Ed) Risk and the Public Acceptance of New Technologies, 154-174.

Conferences

Soutar I, Devine-Wright P (2022). How do Smart Local Energy System projects understand and engage with publics?. Iain Soutar. 20th - 23rd Jun 2022.
Gupta R, Jimenez-Moreno P, Sosa AD, Devine-Wright P (2021). Spatio-temporal mapping of local areas for engaging communities in the planning of smart local energy initiatives. Abstract.
Payne SR, Devine-Wright P, Irvine KN (2007). People's perceptions and classifications of sounds heard in urban parks: Semantics, affect and restoration. Abstract.
Devine-Wright H, Leach M, Johnstone CM, Devine-Wright P (2005). Integrating multidisciplinary perspectives on demand side participation for future power systems. Abstract.
Devine-Wright H, Leach M, Johnstone CM, Devine-Wright P (2005). Integrating multidisciplinary perspectives on demand side participation for future power systems. 2005 International Conference on Future Power Systems.
Wall R, Devine-Wright P, Mill GA (2005). Psychological predictors in context: an empirical study of interactions between determinants of car use intentions.  Author URL.
Devine-Wright P (2004). Towards zero-carbon: Citizenship, responsibility and the public acceptability of sustainable energy technologies. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, McAlpine G, Batley-White S (2001). Wind turbines in the landscape: an evaluation of local community involvement and other considerations in UK wind farm development.  Author URL.

Reports

Devine-Wright P, Golding SE, Lefort P (2023). ACCESS Assembly 2023: Event Evaluation Report. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P, Lefort P, Golding SE (2023). ACCESS Assembly 2023: Event Evaluation Report.
Devine-Wright P, Spruce M, Golding SE (2023). Flex Fund Round One Evaluation Report. Abstract.
Romankevich K, Harwood B, Lefort P, Devine-Wright P (2023). Guidance for Planning and. Hosting a Successful Hybrid. Event - Reflections from the. ACCESS Annual Assembly 2022. Abstract.
Devine-Wright P (2023). Reflections on the. ACCESS Flexible Fund. Abstract.
Soutar I, Devine-Wright P (2022). How can Smart Local Energy Systems projects and policies engage more effectively with the public?.
Soutar I, Devine-Wright P (2022). Submission to the Net Zero Review Call for Evidence, Oct 2022.
Matthew GS, Fitch-Roy OWF, Connor PM, Woodman B, Thies P, Hussain E, Mahmood H, Abusara M, Yan X, Hardwick J, et al (2018). ICE report T2.1.2 - ICE general methodology. INTERREG,  Penryn, UK, University of Exeter.
Devine-Wright P, Rydin Y, Guy S, Hunt L, Walker L, Watson J, Loughead J, Ince M (2009). Powering our Lives: Sustainable Energy Management and the Built Environment (2009). Final Project Report.  London. Government Office for Science.  Author URL.

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External Engagement and Impact

Awards/Honorary fellowships

I am currently Adjunct Professor in Geography at Trinity College, Dublin in Ireland. I have been awarded Visiting Professor positions at the following institutions: in Australia at the University of Melbourne(2010) and at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO, 2012 and 2013); in South Africa at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal (2010) and the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (2010).


Committee/panel activities

Member of the National Advisory Panel on Community Engagement for EirGrid, the Irish electricity system operator (2013+).

Member of the DECC/DEFRA Social Science Expert Panel (2012+).

Invited Lead Expert for DIUS Foresight project on 'Sustainable Energy Management and the Built Environment' (2007-8).

Member of International Science Panel on Renewable Energy (2005-2008). 

Member of the National Advisory Group steering the Countryside Agency’s Community Renewables Initiative (2001-2006).

Member of Regional Advisory Group of East Midlands Community Renewables Initiative (2002-2005).


Editorial responsibilities

Editorial board member for the following journals: Global Environmental Change, Energy Research and Social Science, Environment and Behavior, PsyEcology, Local Environment.

Co-editor of the 2010 special issue on 'Place, Identity and Behavior' - Journal of Environmental Psychology


External Examiner Positions

I have examined PhD theses for the following Universities: the Open University, University of Exeter, Robert Gordon University, Cardiff University, Lancaster University, University of Edinburgh, the University of Melbourne and the University of South Australia.


Invited lectures & workshops

Over the past 5 years, I have given invited lectures and seminars to academic audiences at Universities across the UK, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. I also have given invited lectures to policy makers in the UK and New Zealand. Recent keynotes include the 2016 conference on Energy and Society in Leipig, the 2015 conference on Energy Landscapes in Dresden and the 2014 conference on Renewable Energy Research at the University of Oslo, Norway.


Media Coverage

I have given interviews on the topic of 'NIMBYism' and public acceptance for TV and radio programmes including Countryfile, the Today programme, Costing the Earth and PM. My work has also featured in many newspaper articles by UK national press and professional publications.


Significant Impact

My work on community engagement and public acceptance of renewable energy technologies has led to membership of the DECC/Defra Social Science Expert Panel and an invited think-piece commissioned by the Department of Energy and Climate Change. Ideas and findings have influenced UK government thinking on energy policies and practices of participation and consultation. For example, the 2013 call for evidence on Community Energy issued by DECC uses a framework developed by Gordon Walker and myself to understand what distinguishes these projects from developer led schemes.  

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Teaching

Module leader: NIMBYism and the Low Carbon Transition (Year 3 BA Geography)

Module leader: Research Methods in Human Geography (Year 2 BA Geography)

I contribute to several other undergraduate modules (e.g. Introduction to Environment and Sustainability) and supervise undergraduate dissertations.

Modules

2023/24

Information not currently available


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Supervision / Group

Research Fellows

  • Chad Walker
  • Stacia Ryder

Postdoctoral researchers

Postgraduate researchers

  • Zoé Chateau
  • Celia Robbins
  • Jean-Pierre Roux

Alumni

  • Dr. Etienne Bailey (completed 2015)
  • Dr Sara Batley-White (completed 2003)
  • Wiersma Bouke (completed 2012 ) Public engagement with offshore renewable energy in Guernsey
  • Adrian Breugger (completed 2018) Psychological distance and climate change
  • Dr Helen Chadwick (completed 2003)
  • Dr. Jack Nicholls (completed 2020)
  • Dr Sarah Payne (completed 2009)
  • Catherine Queen (completed 2022)
  • Dr Fionnguala Sherry-Brennan (completed 2008)
  • Dr Rob Wall (completed 2006)

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Office Hours:

My office hours are at the following times:

Monday 4-5pm (virtual)

Wednesday 4-5pm (in person)

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