Miriam Aczel

• Doctor of Philosophy
• PostDoc Position at University of California, Berkeley

This perspective paper examines the current policy landscape for hydraulic fracturing in China, with a focus on the role of public attitudes toward shale gas in China. We highlight the need for further research on public perceptions and responses in a non-democratic society, both for the potential protection of residents who might be affected by th...

The potential impacts of fracking on the environment and health, as well as impacts on local communities and their "quality of life," are well documented. This paper outlines the potential human rights impacts of fracking and argues for a human rights-based, participatory, and justice-based approach to regulation. In particular, it discusses the fi...

High-volume hydraulic fracturing combined with horizontal drilling has “revolutionized” the United States’ oil and gas industry by allowing extraction of previously inaccessible oil and gas trapped in shale rock [1]. Although the United States has extracted shale gas in different states for several decades, the United Kingdom is in the early stages...

Although the United States has been stimulating well production with hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”)1 since the 1940s [1], high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) combined with horizontal drilling is a relatively recent [2, 3] development with potential to adversely impact human health [4], environment [5], and water resources [6], with uncertain...

We examine ‘fracking’ for shale gas extraction in England, France, and Algeria, framed from the perspective of level of acceptance by communities and general public. We explore the extent to which public participation in decision-making should play a role in fracking regulation, and evaluate whether the level of public participation matches the leg...

Climate change increasingly affects social, economic and ecological systems, particularly in the most vulnerable regions of the world. The most frequently promoted strategies for handling impacts are mitigation and adaptation. Despite employing these two approaches, ‘loss and damage’ (L&D) may still occur. Thus, a third strategic approach may be ne...

Given the uncertainty around climate change and the need to design systems that anticipate future needs, risks, and costs or values related to resilience, the current rules-based regulatory and policy frameworks designed for the centralized system of large-scale energy generation and delivery may not be ‘fit for purpose' for smaller scale local ins...

Reflecting on humanity's intertwined history with water, a scientist offers actionable advice for meeting future needs.

This commentary suggests that undertaking citizen science research with young people has the potential to play a significant role in contributing to the IPPC and related UN research and policy processes around climate change. Further, citizen science engagement can educate and empower children and young people in and through research by involving w...

The UK has incorporated a net-zero emissions target into national legislation. A range of Greenhouse Gas Removal (GGR) options will likely play a key role in the government's strategy toward meeting this goal. Governance frameworks will need to be developed to support GGR development and manage the potential impacts, particularly those on the diver...

Social, racial, and economic disparities are crucial considerations in climate policies.

Citizen science (CS) is the practice in which amateurs without formal scientific training collect data to contribute to the scientific observations available to scientists and decision makers (Bonney et al., 2009). Citizen science is increasingly utilized for environmental protection and conservation as well as related purposes such as education, a...

Management of mangrove ecosystems is complex, given that mangroves are both terrestrial and marine, often cross regional or national boundaries, and are valued by local stakeholders in different ways than they are valued on national and international scales. Thus, mangrove governance has had varying levels of success, analyzed through concepts such...

Invoking shared values can help convince skeptics of the need to mitigate climate change.

In 2017, France legislated a prohibition on domestic hydrocarbon exploration and production by 2040, in line with national carbon emissions reduction goals. As the law applies only to France or French territories, there is argued incentive for French-based companies to move their extractive activities abroad. France also passed in 2017 a remarkable...

The Microsoft mogul offers a pragmatic approach to achieving greenhouse gas targets

Greenhouse gas removal (GGR) is increasingly seen as a key dimension of national and international climate policy. The need to deploy a portfolio of GGR technologies in order to decarbonise sectors with the ‘hardest-to-abate’ emissions, particularly to achieve net-zero emissions targets, has become increasingly evident in recent years. In May 2019,...

Algeria, a former French Colony, gained independence from France in 1962. It can be argued, however, that the legacy of post-colonialism continues, particularly with respect to the extractive industries. Both France and Algeria have large unconventional shale deposits—France has the second largest shale gas deposits in Europe after Poland and Alger...

This case study analyzes the potential impacts of weakening the National Park Service’s (NPS) “9B Regulations” enacted in 1978, which established a federal regulatory framework governing hydrocarbon rights and extraction to protect natural resources within the parks. We focus on potential risks to national parklands resulting from Executive Orders...

This article examines the benefits and challenges of engaging children in environmental citizen science, defined as science conducted by nonspecialists under the direction of professional scientists, to promote social good. Citizen science addresses two central elements of the social good model—environmental justice and inclusion with particular at...

While the Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans were able to do remarkably sophisticated calculations, mathematical development was limited until introduction of a true zero. In this article, we will explain why zero was such an important development. We try to answer the question: where did zero come from and how old is the concept of zero? There is str...

Two authors present the urgent case for a Green New Deal

This paper evaluates an approach for strengthening environmental rights for children to safeguard child health. We focus on children as beneficiaries of environmental rights on account of their vulnerability to environmental impacts on their physical and mental health. Current legal frameworks, unless explicitly identifying children as beneficiarie...

Nitrogen, the most abundant element in our atmosphere, is crucial to life. Nitrogen is found in soils and plants, in the water we drink, and in the air we breathe. It is also essential to life: a key building block of DNA, which determines our genetics, is essential to plant growth, and therefore necessary for the food we grow. But as with everythi...

The Gulf struggles to reform subsidies as temperatures and domestic energy demand rise

This paper makes a case for the benefits of engaging children in environmental citizen science (defined as science conducted by non specialists under the direction of professional scientists) to promote social good. We interpret social good in this context as environmental justice and sustainability. Environmental justice includes notions of equali...

Children can both learn from and contribute to citizen science. Scientific learning can develop children’s environmental citizenship, voices and democratic participation as adults. The quality of data produced by children varies across projects and can be assumed to be of poorer quality because of their age, experience and less-developed skill se...

Citizen science, the active participation of the public in scientific research projects, is a rapidly expanding field in open science and open innovation. It provides an integrated model of public knowledge production and engagement with science. As a growing worldwide phenomenon, it is invigorated by evolving new technologies that connect people e...

A straightforward guide offers a nuanced look at unconventional fossil fuel extraction

“When I walk through the bottomland forest and into the upland woods, I may be deep in solitary reverie but I am never alone” (p. 7). Naturalist Melanie Choukas- Bradley (with beautiful photographs by Susan Austin Roth) presents a colourful ode to Rock Creek Park, “...a welcoming sanctuary for millions of city-dwellers who feel the need to commune...