Robert MacNeil

Dr. Robert MacNeil is a Senior Lecturer and Deputy Head of School in the Department of Government and International Relations at the University of Sydney's Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. He is also a member of the Sydney Environment Institute, where he contributes to interdisciplinary environmental research initiatives.

Dr. MacNeil received his BA and MA from York University and completed his PhD in Political Science at the University of Ottawa. He was also a Fulbright Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley.

Dr. MacNeil is a leading scholar in environmental politics, with a focus on climate politics in the Anglosphere. His research examines the cultural, ideological, and institutional dynamics shaping climate inaction, denial, and delay in countries like Australia, Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. He investigates pressing issues including the emotional toll of climate anxiety on young people, the rise of climate denialism among young men and boys, the role of conservative media in shaping public understandings of climate issues, just transitions in coal and agricultural communities, and the political economy of fossil fuel expansionism in Australia. His work bridges political science, sociology, and environmental studies with particular emphasis on neoliberalism's impact on climate governance.

His recent publications demonstrate consistent focus on comparative climate policy analysis across North America and Australia, with strong theoretical grounding in political economy and practical implications for policy implementation. MacNeil's scholarship spans books like 'Thirty Years of Failure: Understanding Canadian Climate Policy' (2019) and 'Neoliberalism and Climate Policy in the United States' (2017), along with numerous high-impact journal articles addressing contemporary climate challenges.

• Numerous teaching awards recognizing innovation, clarity, and care in the classroom
• Active contributor to public climate discourse through The Conversation, ABC News, and The Sydney Morning Herald

As an engaged supervisor, Dr. MacNeil guides students across climate politics, food and agriculture politics, innovation policy, energy transitions, federalism, and international political economy. His current research students include Shyam Singh working on fossil fuel lobby networks. Beyond teaching, he is writing a book on climate pedagogy drawing on nearly two decades of university teaching experience to address ecological breakdown in educational settings.