Nicholas Kirsop-Taylor

Department: Politics
Discipline: Politics
Research Centre/Unit: Land, Environment, Economics and Policy Institute

Project Summary

Nick's research thesis aims to offer new understandings about the implementation deficit of Ecosystem Approach of the Convention on Biological Diversity.  This multilateral environmental agreement is a cornerstone of global environmental governance, and the failure of the ecosystem approach, envisaged as its framework for delivery is concerning.  The United Nations Environment Programme are increasingly focused on the implementation of agreements such as the CBD making this a dynamic and active research space. This thesis summarises, and then builds upon previous research in this field by refreshing established explanations of the implementation deficit of the ecosystem approach, and then offers the Steert Level Bureaucrat theory (Lipsky, 1980) as a framework for better understanding its partial implementation in the UK.    

Supervisory Team

Professor Michael Winter (Lead supervisor, UoE).  Dr Duncan Russel (Second supervisor, UoE).  Dr Glyn Jones (Food and environment research agency)

Wider Research Interests

Environmental policy, environmental politics, market based instruments - specifically 'biodiversity offsetting' and 'payment for ecosystem services', global environmental governance, public policy - specifically environmental policy implementation, participatory environmental governance, renewable energy policy, renewable energy supply chain development.  Note: an up-to-date list of research publications can be found athttps://www.researchgate.net/profile/Nick_Kirsop-Taylor 

Authored Publications/Reports

Kirsop-Taylor N (1st November 2015) Biodiversity offsetting and the environmental management voluntary sector: opportunities, risks and the way ahead, Voluntary sector review, 6 (3), 303-310

Kirsop-Taylor N (1st March 2015) What hope for UK Biodiversity offsetting now?, TOR: Open review of social sciences, 1, 31-33

Kirsop-Taylor N (1st March 2015) Book review: Shannon K., Orr, (2014), ‘Environmental policymaking and stakeholder collaboration: theory and practice , Environmental values, upcoming