Eli Fenichel

Eli Fenichel is the Knobloch Family Professor of Natural Resource Economics at Yale University's School of Forestry and Environmental Studies (The Forest School). His research focuses on valuing natural capital and understanding feedbacks between human decisions and ecological systems. Fenichel is a leading expert in bioeconomics, economic-epidemiology, and sustainable resource management.

He teaches courses including ENV 762a (Foundations of Applied Math for the Environment) and ENV 795b (Nature as Capital: Merging Ecological and Economic Models). Supported by the Knobloch Family Foundation, his work integrates capital theory with ecological dynamics to inform national accounting and policy. Fenichel is currently on leave for Spring 2024 but plans to recruit 1 PhD and 1 MESc student for Fall 2024.

Key projects include valuing groundwater in the High Plains Aquifer, analyzing pandemic behavior during COVID-19, and advancing ecosystem-based management frameworks. His research emphasizes scalable natural capital valuation to bridge ecological and economic systems.