Marion Harney

Marion Harney is a Professor of Building & Landscape Conservation at the University of Bath's Department of Architecture & Civil Engineering, within the Faculty of Engineering and Design. She concurrently serves as Associate Dean (Education), UNESCO Bath World Heritage Site Advisory Board Chair since 2024, and Visiting Professor at the University of Westminster. Her roles also include Athena SWAN Leader in the Vice Chancellor's Office and Academic Lead for the Curriculum Transformation Project Group. She holds dual expertise in heritage conservation and educational leadership, with affiliations to the Centre for Regenerative Design & Engineering (RENEW) and the Centre for Climate Adaptation & Environment Research (CAER).

Education:

• Bachelor of Arts in English Literature, University of Bristol (2000)
• Master of Philosophy in Pope and Prior Park: an essay in landscape and literature, University of Bath (2005)
• Doctor of Philosophy in Place Making for the Imagination: Horace Walpole and Strawberry Hill, University of Bath (2011)

Research interests focus on historic buildings and designed landscapes, particularly 18th-century architecture and literature's role in shaping heritage perception. Her work emphasizes UNESCO World Heritage Sites, adaptive reuse of historic structures, and integrating digital technologies like CAD for conservation analysis. Recent projects include fibrous plaster material research funded by the Leverhulme Trust and multidisciplinary studies on flood resilience in heritage contexts.

Her publications reveal a strong emphasis on material heritage (plaster analysis, 2023-2025), conservation theory (adaptive reuse, genius loci, 2017-2021), and heritage governance (WHS management, Gardens Trust reports, 2016-2018).

Scientific Awards:

• John Brinckerhoff Jackson Book Prize (2015)
• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA)

Advising & Grants: Supervised 5 academic projects including EPSRC/National Trust co-funded Engineering Doctorates. Leads multi-organizational initiatives like the £1.8M HLF-funded 'Bathscape' project (2014-2018) and current Leverhulme Trust-funded fibrous plaster studies. Collaborates with international bodies such as ICOMOS-UK and the Sorbonne.

Labs/Teams: Core member of Bath's RENEW and CAER research centers. Coordinates interdisciplinary teams in heritage retrofit futures, climate adaptation, and synchrotron-based material analysis for historic structures.