معرفی
Karen Akerlof is an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy at George Mason University, where she leads the 'Communication for Environmental Science, Policy, and Human Behavior' concentration in the master's program. Her academic work bridges science, governance, and public engagement, focusing on how scientific information is communicated to policymakers and communities.
Her research centers on three interconnected areas: science communication with policymakers, public participation in environmental decision-making, and the integration of social science into evidence-based policymaking. She employs both qualitative and quantitative methods, including surveys, big data, and natural language processing, to study science advice processes in legislatures and stakeholder engagement in climate adaptation.
The trends across her recent publications reveal a strong focus on climate change communication, coastal adaptation, equity in research co-production, and legislative science advice. Her work spans disciplines including environmental science, political science, public policy, and behavioral science, with an emphasis on practical applications in governance.
- 3rd Place, Top Faculty Paper, Communicating Science, Health, Environment and Risk (ComSHER), A Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (2021)
- American Geophysical Union/American Association for the Advancement of Science congressional science fellow, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC (2016-2017)
Akerlof advises graduate students and leads research projects funded by the National Science Foundation and the National Park Service. Her current work includes developing methodologies for analyzing evidence use in legislatures and studying sun protection behaviors to reduce environmental and health impacts. She teaches courses such as 'Tackling Wicked Problems in Society & the Environment,' 'Environmental Science Communication,' and 'Evidence-based Environmental Policymaking.'
She is actively involved in interdisciplinary research teams and collaborates with federal agencies, contributing to national conversations on science policy and climate resilience. Her lab focuses on science communication strategies and participatory governance models, aiming to improve the societal impact of environmental research.
