Jeremy Wells

Dr. Jeremy C. Wells is an Assistant Professor of Historic Preservation at Roger Williams University, USA, and a Fulbright Scholar. He is affiliated with the Historic Preservation Program within the School of Art, Architecture, and Historic Preservation. His research focuses on how people perceive, value, and interact with historic environments, emphasizing place attachment and parallels to natural environments. He employs social science methodologies like ethnography and phenomenology to address these questions.

Dr. Wells co-edited Preservation Education: Sharing Best Practices and Finding Common Ground (University Press of New England) and founded the Environmental Design Research Association’s Historic Environment Knowledge Network (2008). He currently conducts research in Brazil on community participation in heritage conservation in Olinda, Pernambuco.

His work bridges theory and practice, advocating for heritage conservation that prioritizes societal benefits. Notable publications analyze urban conservation charters, authenticity in preservation, and phenomenological comparisons between historic and new-urbanist communities.