Summary
Miriam is a Postdoctoral Scholar at the California Institute for Energy and Environment (CIEE) at University of California, Berkeley, working on the Oakland EcoBlock pilot project. She is also an Honorary Research Associate at the Centre for Environmental Policy (CEP) at Imperial College London, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.
Miriam's research areas include low-carbon energy transformation; renewable energy generation; electric grid technologies; energy justice and resilience; greenhouse gas removal technologies and policy; international energy and environmental law and policy; global environmental change and climate science; human rights and environmental justice; environmental and public health; and citizen science.
Miriam was previously a President's PhD Scholar (2016 - 2020) at Imperial College London's Center for Environmental Policy. Miriam's doctoral research, supervised by Karen E. Makuch, was on international regulation of hydraulic fracturing to extract shale gas in the UK, USA, France, China, and Algeria.
She recently spent semesters as a visiting researcher at the Environmental Law Institute in Washington, DC, and at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China. Miriam currently serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Science Policy and Governance (JSPG).
Miriam received her MSc in Environmental Technology (with Distinction) from Imperial College London and BA in Geography and Earth Science (with Distinction), with minor degrees in Italian Language & Literature; and Geology & Geophysics from McGill University in Montreal. She has spent semesters studying at Sciences Politiques, Paris, at the University of Florence, and at the University of Maryland.
Prior to beginning her PhD, Miriam interned at the London Natural History Museum’s Core Research Labs and worked as an academic coach with Mansart Education Ltd.
She is co-founder and current co-director of the 501-c3 educational non-profit Amir D. Aczel Foundation for Education and Research in Science and Mathematics.
Miriam is Director of Communications and blog editor for Leaders in Energy, an environmental organization based in Washington, DC. She is a frequent contributor of articles for Leaders in Energy, and the Environmental Law Institute's Vibrant Environment.
She speaks fluent French, Italian, and Hebrew and is studying Spanish.
Selected Publications
Journal Articles
O'Beirne T, Battersby F, Mallett A, et al., 2020, The UK net-zero target: Insights into procedural justice for greenhouse gas removal, Environmental Science & Policy, Vol:112, ISSN:1462-9011, Pages:264-274
Makuch K, Aczel M, 2020, Eco-citizen science for social good: promoting child well-being, environmental justice, and inclusion, Research on Social Work Practice, Vol:30, ISSN:1049-7315
Aczel MR, Aczel D, Ville M, 2019, Hero from the east: how zero came to the west, Frontiers for Young Minds, Vol:7, Pages:1-8
Makuch K, Zaman S, Aczel M, 2019, Tomorrow’s stewards: the case for a unified international framework on the environmental rights of children, Health and Human Rights: an International Journal, Vol:21, ISSN:1079-0969, Pages:203-214
Aczel MR, 2019, What Is the nitrogen cycle and why is it key to life?, Frontiers for Young Minds, Vol:7
Aczel MR, Makuch KE, 2019, Shale, Quakes, and High Stakes: Regulating Fracking-Induced Seismicity in Oklahoma, USA and Lancashire, UK, Case Studies in the Environment, Vol:3, ISSN:2473-9510
Aczel MR, Makuch KE, 2018, Environmental impact assessments and hydraulic fracturing: lessons from two U.S. States, Case Studies in the Environment, Vol:2, ISSN:2473-9510, Pages:1-11
Aczel MR, Makuch KE, 2018, Human rights and fracking in England: the role of the Oregon permanent people’s tribunal, Health and Human Rights: an International Journal, Vol:20, ISSN:1079-0969, Pages:31-41
Aczel MR, Makuch KE, 2018, The lay of the land: The public, participation and policy in China's fracking frenzy, Extractive Industries and Society, Vol:5, ISSN:2214-790X, Pages:508-514
Aczel M, Makuch K, Chibane M, 2018, How much is enough? Approaches to public participation in shale gas regulation across England, France, and Algeria, The Extractive Industries and Society, Vol:5, ISSN:2214-790X, Pages:427-440
Aczel MR, 2017, The Fracking Debate The Risks, Benefits, and Uncertainties of the Shale Revolution, Science, Vol:358, ISSN:0036-8075, Pages:1138-1139
Chapters
Makuch K, Aczel M, 2018, Children and citizen science, Citizen Science: Innovation in Open Science, Society and Policy, Editor(s): Hecker, Hacklay, Bowser, Makuch, Vogel, Bonn, Hecker, Haklay, Bowser, Makuch, Vogel, Bonn, London, United Kingdom, UCL Press, Pages:391-409, ISBN:978-1-78735-233-9
Aczel M, Makuch K, 2018, An assessment of current regulation and suggestions for a citizen-centered approach to the governing of UK hydraulic fracturing, Energy, Resource Extraction and Society Impacts and Contested Futures, Editor(s): Szolucha, ISBN:9780815380153