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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

  • Lax, Michael B., David A. Sonnenfeld, Thomas H. Gassert, and Andrew Watterson, eds. (forthcoming). Special Issue on "Semiconductor Manufacturing, Occupational Health, and the Environment," NEW SOLUTIONS: A Journal of Environmental and Occupational Health Policy." [Call for Papers]
  • Matose, Frank, Lotsmart Fonjong, 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

  • Wu, Fengshi, Ellie Martus, and David A. Sonnenfeld. 2026. "Environmental politics and governance: bringing the authoritarian state back in," Environmental Politics. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2026.2641291.
  • Lee, Kyungsun, and David A. Sonnenfeld. 2025. "Corporate Engagement and Urban Industrial Symbiosis: Lessons from Kitakyushu Eco-Town, Japan," Case Studies in the Environment, 9 (1): 2650201. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1525/cse.2025.2650201. 
  • 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]

PhD Dissertations Supervised

  • Loeffelholz, Marie. 2023. “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.” Graduate Program in Environmental Science (Environmental and Natural Resources Policy), ESF (co-chair)
  • Song, Jongdae. 2021. "A Holistic Approach to Analyzing the Effectiveness of Government-sponsored Voluntary Environmental Programs: Evidence from Manufacturing Industries in South Korea, 2005-2017.” Graduate Program in Environmental Science (Environmental and Natural Resources Policy), ESF (co-chair)
  • Fuentes Viera, Kaira T. 2021. "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.” Graduate Program in Environmental Science (Environmental and Community Land Planning), ESF (co-chair)
  • Oh, Youngmin. 2018. "Science-Politics Interaction in Multinational Boundary Mechanisms: Transboundary Air Pollution in Northeast Asia.” Graduate Program in Environmental Science (Environmental and Community Land Planning), ESF (chair)
  • Lee, Kyungsun. 2018. "From Industrial to Eco-Industrial Parks: the Role of Governance in Sustainability Transitions in Japan and Korea.” Graduate Program in Environmental Science (Environmental and Natural Resources Policy), ESF (chair)
  • Ni, Xiaole. 2018. "The Rising Power of Expertise: Scientists and China's Environmental Movement.” Graduate Program in Environmental Science (Environmental and Natural Resources Policy), ESF (chair)
  • Yang, Xiaoliang. 2016. "An International Partnership Approach to Clean Energy Technology Innovation: Carbon Capture and Storage.” Graduate Program in Environmental Science (Environmental and Natural Resources Policy), ESF (chair)
  • Montefrio, Marvin Joseph F. 2014. "Growing Fuel on Ancestral Domains: Biofuels Crop Development and Decision-Making in Indigenous Communities in the Philippines.” Graduate Program in Environmental Science (Environmental and Natural Resources Policy), ESF (chair)

MSc Theses Supervised

  • Finocchiaro, Grace. 2023. “Between International Priorities and Local Realities: The Complex Socio-political Landscape of Marine Turtle Conservation in El Salvador,” Dept. of Environmental Studies, ESF (co-chair)
  • Minnick, Danielle. 2021. "Drinking Water Vulnerability Mapping: PFOA Contamination in Hoosick Falls, New York," Graduate Program in Environmental Science (Water and Wetland Resource Studies), ESF (chair)
  • Romero Fernández, Moory M. 2021. “Intercultural and Spiritual Approach to Water and Power in the Communitarian State of Bolivia in Times of Climate Change and Political Transformation,” Dept. of Environmental Studies, ESF (co-chair)
  • Coberly, Laura. 2014. "Mangrove Dependencies and Participation in Rehabilitation. A Case Study of the Sine-Saloum Delta, Senegal," Graduate Program in Environmental Science (Environmental Policy and Democratic Processes), ESF (chair)
  • Jiang, Chao. 2014. "The Emergence of Precautionary Chemical Management as a Salient Environmental Policy Concern in China: A Case Study of the Textile Industry," Dept. of Environmental Studies, ESF (chair)
  • Webster, Andrea. 2012. "Who Are We Educating About Sustainability? A Quantitative Analysis of Underrepresented Students Enrolled in Higher Education Institutions in New York State," Dept. of Environmental Studies, ESF (chair)
  • Bell, Kyle. 2011. "Building Metrobús: Actors and Institutions in the Transfer of Bus Rapid Transit Policy to Mexico City," Dept. of Environmental Studies, ESF (chair)
  • Jo, Nayoung. 2011. "The New Community Movement in South Korea in the 1970s: The Power of Community or Governmental Involvement?" Dept. of Environmental Studies, ESF (chair)

Professional Associations