Mette High

Prof. Mette High is a Professor of Social Anthropology and founding Director of the Centre for Energy Ethics at the University of St Andrews. She leads the Scottish Research Alliance for Energy, Homes and Livelihoods, a national consortium addressing energy transitions through interdisciplinary collaboration. Her research focuses on ethics, economics, and energy systems, with fieldwork in Mongolia and the US. She holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge (2008) on Buddhist ethics in Mongolian gold mining.

Her work explores global economic processes intersecting with moral frameworks, particularly in extractive industries. Recent projects include ERC-funded studies on oil economy valuations and Leverhulme Trust research on hydraulic fracturing ethics. She chairs the Environmental Sustainability Board and advises on international energy initiatives.

Her teaching includes courses on energy anthropology, economic ethnography, and virtual worlds. She supervises six PhD candidates across multiple institutions.