Research Professor Janet Stephenson 

Research Professor
Postgraduate Co-ordinator

Tel +64 3 479 8779
Email janet.stephenson@otago.ac.nz

Research background

Janet Stephenson is passionate about collaborative, interdisciplinary research. Her research interests include indigenous resource management; the interconnections between people and their local environments; and the role of individuals and organisations in the transition to a sustainable future.

Janet has been Director of the Centre for Sustainability since February 2011. Her academic background is in sociology, planning and human geography. She joined the Centre as a Senior Research Fellow at the end of 2008, having previously taught in the Geography Department at Otago University from 2002–2008.

Janet is on the steering committee for the University of Otago research themes Catchments Otago and Otago Energy Research Centre.

She is on the Advisory Board of INCLUDE, a Norwegian research centre for socially inclusive energy transitions, the BEATS research programme (Built Environment and Active Transport to School) and the BRANZ Transition to Zero Carbon Programme.

She is also a member of the Coastal People: Southern Skies collaboration that connects communities with world-leading, cross-disciplinary research to rebuild coastal ecosystems.

Current PhD Students

• Mino Cleverley - Samoa and Fa'asinomaga - An Indigenous Perspective of Forced Migration on account of Sea-level Rise and Climate Change
• Courtney Simpson - The role of carbon markets and investment in New Zealand's transition to a low carbon economy
• Ariane Bray - Reframing climate policy through justice, fairness, and equity
• Sarah Harrison - Health and wellbeing impacts of climate change in South Dunedin
• Kakau Foliaki - Energy Cultures in Tonga
• Suzanne Claessen - Exploring children's relations with local biodiversity through cartooning
• Jefferson Dew - Demand response in agricultural electricity consumption

Supervised PhDs awarded

• Ben Tombs - Property Pergatory
• Carsten Dortans - Shifting energy cultures: Do household electricity consumption patterns change after adoption of solar PV?
• Suzanne Claessen – Insect Play – transforming multispecies stories with unloved creatures, comics and children
• Jamie Metzger – Mauri and Museums: Who really cares? The tensions between kaitiakitanga and museology
• Will Stovall - Faces of stone: environmental history and cultures of Paha Sapa (The Black Hills), USA
• Imran Khan – A Temporal Approach to Characterizing Electrical Peak Demand
• Gilles Marciniak - The Landscapes of Today and Tomorrow - A phenomenological exploration of experience and anticipation in the context of climate change
• Salma Bakr - Dynamic Demand Response in Residential Prosumer Collectives
• Daniel Gnoth - Residential mobility and changing energy related behaviour
• Ikerne Aguirre-Bielschowsky - Electricity Saving Behaviours and Energy Literacy of New Zealand Children
• Yuan Lu – The Role of Local Knowledge in Yancheng National Nature Reserve
• Stephanie Rotarangi - Planted forests on ancestral land: the experiences and resilience of Māori land owners

Research

Current projects

• Innovations for Climate Adaptation (2022-2024).  Co-Principal Investigator with Prof Merata Kawharu. This project tracks innovations in governance and management that are being undertaken by mana whenua and local authorities as they adjust to making decisions for a climate-impacted future. Funded by Deep South National Science Challenge.
• Simulation of climate change impacts on the New Zealand energy system (2020-23). Associate Investigator.  Funded by Deep South National Science Challenge.
• Kainga and Climate Change (2019-2024). Associate investigator in this project which is working with 7 rural Māori communities om how they and their descendants can better shape a future that builds community and environmental resilience in response to climate change.  Funded by MBIE Endeavour Fund.

Current funded international collaborations

• Flexeffects (2019-2022) examines how flexible electricity use among households can be achieved amongst Norwegian households, trialling various way to incentivise flexible electricity consumption. Funded by the Norwegian Research Council
• Bioshare (2019-2022)explores bioeconomies as the 'new oil' for Norway and how benefit-sharing could be achieved in these new economies. Funded by the Norwegian Research Council.

Recent projects

• Climate-Adaptive Communities (2018-19) Janet was Principal Investigator for this research programme funded by the Deep South National Science Challenge. The findings (including videos, webinars, a cartoon and policy advice) support local government staff to build community readiness to engage with coastal communities that are facing climate change challenges such as sea level rise.
• Sustainable Seas (2017-2019) Janet was a member of the Science Leadership Team (SLT) on the Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge 2017-2019.  As cross-programme leader, she was responsible for the delivery of projects including how ecosystem-based management (EBM) fits into New Zealand's legislative and policy frameworks, and an EBM case study trialled in Tasman and Golden Bays.
• Demand Response in Agriculture (2017-2019) Janet's research in this National Science Challenge looked at the potential for dairy farmers with irrigated farms to become involved in demand response in the electricity system.  PhD student Jefferson Dew has a major role in this project.
• Biosmart (2015-2018) Research on managing the transition to a smart bioeconomy. Led by Ruralis, Norway.
• Vulnerable Communities and Climate Change (2017) involved a series of dialogues with stakeholders nationally about what issues communities were facing with climate change, and where research was required.  Funded by the Deep South National Science Challenge, contracted to Motu.
• Valuation Frameworks for marine decision-making (2016-2019) Janet was an Associate Investigator in this workstream of the Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge.
• Green Grid - Janet was a key researcher in the Green Grid research programme. The research examined how NZ's electricity grid can be managed in future with higher levels of renewable energy, distributed generation, and consumer uptake of new grid-connected appliances such as photovoltaics, electric vehicles and energy management systems. The programme was led by the Epecentre, University of Canterbury.
• Energy Cultures 2 - Janet led the four-year interdisciplinary Energy Cultures 2 research programme. It addressed the questions: How best might NZ realise cost-effective opportunities for energy efficiency and savings in homes, small businesses and their transport? What do new transport technologies and practices offer for greater efficiencies? The results are summarised for policy makers:
  Energy Cultures Policy Briefs

Selected outreach (reports, videos)

Stories of Kelso: Experiences of relocation and lessons for planned retreat. MacKenzie, J., Bond, S., & Stephenson, J. (2022)

Stephenson, J. (2021, August). Culture and sustainability. University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand. Inaugural Professorial Lecture.

Reducing GHGs on farms: A summary of options for reducing greenhouse gas emissions on New Zealand livestock farms. Hamill, B. & Stephenson, J. (2020). A report from the Coolcrowd research project.

Dunedin Energy Study 2018–19. Cook, F., Stephenson, J., & Jack, M. (2020).

Electric vehicle uptake in Dunedin 2019. Stephenson, J., & Cook, F. (2020).

Reducing GHGs on farms: A summary of options for reducing greenhouse gas emissions on New Zealand livestock farms. Hamill, B. & Stephenson, J. (2020). A report from the Coolcrowd research project.

Communities and Climate Change [Cartoon strip]. Stephenson, J. & Neilson, C. (2019). From the Climate-Adaptive Communities project of the Deep South National Science Challenge.

Community Development for Climate Adaptation: One neighbourhood's perspective. [Video] Stephenson, J. (2019). From the Climate-Adaptive Communities project of the Deep South National Science Challenge.

Community Development for Climate Adaptation: Dunedin City Council perspective. [Video]. Stephenson, J. (2019). From the Climate-Adaptive Communities project of the Deep South National Science Challenge.

Council-community engagement for a climate-impacted future. [Policy brief]. Stephenson, J., Barber, J., Barth, J., Bond, S., Diprose, G., Heyd, C., Kirk, N., Laurie-Fendall, R., Orchiston, C., Saunders, W., Simon, K., Thomas, A., Vincent, N. (2019).

Council-community engagement for climate adaptation [Webinar]. Stephenson, J. & Bond, S. (2019).  From the Climate-Adaptive Communities project of the Deep South National Science Challenge.

Selected media features

Our grandchildren need change now Op-Ed in Otago Daily Times 16 July 2022

Shift to renewables unlikely to leave NZ in the dark. Morning report interview with Radio NZ on NZ's energy future. 18 July 2022

Pumped storage and the intricate dance Stuff 17 August 2020

Planning for a post-growth world Interest.co.nz 8 August 2020

New Zealand wants to build a 100% renewable electricity grid, but massive infrastructure is not the best option. The Conversation (online) (30 July 2020)

Covid-19 has nothing on what's coming Op-ed in Newsroom (online) (20 April 2020)