Daan van Uhm

Daan van Uhm serves as Associate Professor of Criminology at Utrecht University's School of Law, specifically within the Willem Pompe Institute for Criminal Law and Criminology. He also holds the position of Professor of Environmental Crime at the Open University. His academic work is conducted in collaboration with the Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR). Van Uhm maintains active leadership roles as Chair of the Green Criminology Division of the Nederlandse Vereniging voor Criminologie (NVC), Chair of the Illegal Environmental Markets Building Block (IEM), and Co-chair of both the Green Criminology Specialist Group at IUCN and the Critical Pathways to Sustainability Group at Utrecht University.

Van Uhm's research centers on green criminology with particular focus on environmental crimes including wildlife trafficking, illegal mining, deforestation, and the criminalization of ecocide. His work examines how organized crime groups diversify into illegal trade of natural resources, exploring the convergence between environmental crime and other serious crimes. He investigates criminogenic asymmetries in ecology, economy, law, politics and power that contribute to global environmental degradation. His research spans multiple continents with fieldwork in Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Central Africa.

Analysis of his recent publications reveals a consistent focus on the intersection of organized crime and environmental harm, with increasing attention to the concept of 'green laundering' - where illegally obtained natural resources are integrated into legitimate markets. His work demonstrates how environmental crimes are not isolated incidents but part of complex transnational criminal networks that exploit legal loopholes and governance gaps. A notable trend in his research is the examination of how criminal organizations diversify their operations across different illegal markets while maintaining connections to legal economic activities.

• Veni grant from Dutch Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) in 2018 for research on 'The Diversification of Organized Crime into the Illegal Trade in Natural Resources'
• ERC Starting Grant from European Research Council in 2022 for 'Green Crimes and Joint Crime Ventures: Laundering Natural Resources'

Van Uhm has received significant research funding that supports his fieldwork in multiple countries examining environmental crime networks. His work connects academic research with practical policy implications, particularly regarding the criminalization of ecocide and enforcement of environmental regulations. He collaborates with various international organizations including the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and serves on technical working groups addressing environmental crimes. His research has informed policy discussions at both national and international levels, contributing to efforts to strengthen legal frameworks against environmental crimes.