Robert Fisher

Dr Robert Fisher is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Geosciences at The University of Sydney and Senior Researcher with the Mekong Research Group. His research focuses on social and political ecology of natural resource management, particularly community forestry in Asia, Africa, and the Pacific. He holds a PhD in anthropology from the University of Western Sydney and has conducted fieldwork across 20+ countries including Nepal, India, Mozambique, and Papua New Guinea. Fisher specialises in participatory action research methodologies, adaptive collaborative management frameworks, and policy analysis related to forest governance and poverty reduction.

His academic career includes roles as Deputy Director at the Regional Community Forestry Training Center in Bangkok (1997–2001), and teaching at the University of Western Sydney. His work bridges theoretical research with applied conservation practices, emphasizing community engagement and sustainable development. Fisher is affiliated with the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre and contributes to global initiatives like the Livelihoods and Landscapes Strategy.

Research interests include: forest decentralization, climate adaptation strategies in mountain regions, transboundary natural resource management, and the intersection of indigenous rights with conservation policy. Notable outputs include seminal books such as Linking Conservation and Poverty Reduction (2008) and Community Forestry in Nepal (2018), along with over 40 peer-reviewed articles and policy reports.

Current projects explore community-based reforestation in PNG, forest governance in Brazil's Amazon, and the role of sacred sites in biodiversity conservation. Fisher supervises three PhD candidates examining topics ranging from decision-making frameworks in land management to human-megafauna coexistence strategies.