About

Nicole Ardoin is an Associate Professor of Environmental Behavioral Sciences in the Environmental Social Sciences Department of the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. She is also a Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment. Her research focuses on motivations for and barriers to environmental behavior at both individual and collective levels. She and her Social Ecology Lab employ mixed-methods approaches—including participant observation, interviews, surveys, mapping, network analysis, and ethnography—to explore how place-based connections, environmental learning, and social-ecological interactions influence participation in environmental and sustainability-related decision-making processes. Her work is grounded in theory and oriented toward practical applications, with much of her research co-designed and implemented in collaboration with community partners through a field-based, participatory approach.

Research topics

• Computer Science
• Sociology
• Pedagogy
• Psychology
• Political Science
• Medical education
• Geography
• Knowledge management
• Ecology
• Chemistry
• Medicine
• Public relations
• Social psychology
• Business
• Epistemology
• World Wide Web
• Environmental science
• Developmental psychology
• Engineering
• Engineering ethics

Selected publications

• A youth-led study of motivations and supports in youth climate activism: formal education as part of the climate learningscape

  Climatic Change · 2026-05-01

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Youth climate activism has received increased attention from media and researchers over the past decade. Understanding how young people become and remain engaged in climate activism helps identify how to effectively nurture and support youth climate activists. Drawing on sociocultural learning theory and the concept of learningscapes, this study examines how formal education functions as part of a dynamic ecosystem of climate learning and action. Youth researchers interviewed 31 young people (ages 13-28) in the San Francisco Bay Area (California, United States) who were involved in a range of climate activism efforts. Thematic qualitative analysis revealed that formal education experiences positively impacted climate activism through structural elements (curriculum and extracurricular activities) as well as normative influences (passionate educators and peer interactions), despite climate education in U.S. schools often being critiqued for its failure to adequately prepare young people for climate action. Our findings demonstrate how schools contribute to the climate activism learningscape through sociocultural processes of guided participation and community building. Although school experiences were not the only motivators and supports, and exposure to meaningful climate education does not occur in all schools, our findings highlight how formal education can be a vital part of a young person’s journey to climate activism.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Engaging people in educational processes that foster environmentally valuable outcomes: A synthesis of key findings across eight systematic reviews

  People and Nature · 2026-02-16 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Abstract Alongside the rise of the evidence‐based conservation movement over the past 20 years, environmental education (EE) has emerged as a worthwhile strategy to achieve conservation goals. EE can help develop the societal attitudes, knowledge, skills, behaviours and norms that address conservation and environmental challenges and build deeper connections between nature and people. To better understand the effectiveness of EE in achieving such outcomes, we conducted a series of systematic reviews of evidence‐based scholarship. In this article, we synthesise key findings derived from an analysis of 546 international peer‐reviewed studies for distinct audiences (e.g. early childhood, K‐12 provision) and contemporary priority areas in the field, namely climate change, conservation, civic engagement, positive youth development and community/citizen science. Our synthesis reveals six recurring themes that contribute to effective EE: employing diverse teaching and learning approaches; fostering participatory methods; including direct action components; focusing on local community settings; connecting to personally relevant information; and collaborating with experts and stakeholders. While no universal model emerged, programmes can help strengthen people–nature connections by integrating these educational elements into evidence‐based conservation. EE programmes should prioritize authentic, community‐grounded experiences that engage participants as active agents rather than passive recipients. To achieve desired conservation and broader environmental goals, EE initiatives require sustained investment, cross‐sector partnerships and evaluation frameworks that capture long‐term behavioural and environmental outcomes. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Complementary interactional contexts facilitate learning about the environment in everyday life

  Sustainability Science · 2026-02-23

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  To address today’s sustainability challenges and move toward societal transformation, people must continually learn about and develop skills to enact effective, informed change. Only a small portion of any human’s lifespan is spent in formal education; thus, it is critical to explore the daily-life interactional contexts in which people learn—i.e., gain awareness, conceptual knowledge, and procedural skills to take action—with regard to environmental issues. Yet, to date, little attention has focused on where and when people learn about the environment and are motivated to make change through the course of everyday-life activities. We therefore pursued a study exploring such questions using modified focus groups (“community listening sessions”) that involved more than 100 participants from the San Francisco Bay ecoregion of California (USA). We built upon an existing framework of sociocultural learning to distinguish nine key interactional contexts, six of which were previously developed and three we added to reflect the unique nature of environmental learning. These interactional contexts are: distributed resources (e.g., internet, books); informal institutions (e.g., museums, aquariums); laws and policies; the biophysical environment; family; community members; school; friends/peers; and work. We call for more scholarly and practitioner attention to these settings as we work to engage a broader swath of the global public in meaningful action related to pressing sustainability issues.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• “It’s not (just) about content: reimagining academic conferences for relational sustainability research”

  Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences · 2026-01-24

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Community scientists provide knowledge and public education and help enforce environmental regulations in social-ecological systems

  Communications Earth & Environment · 2025-02-07 · 4 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Community scientists provide essential support for understanding social-ecological systems. Here we analyze how community scientists work alongside institutions to study, manage, and protect these systems. Through interviews conducted in 2023 and 2024 in a coastal community in California, USA, we developed a conceptual framework showing how community scientists contribute to three main social-ecological processes: generating new knowledge, providing education to the community, and supporting enforcement of conservation regulations. Our analysis reveals that community scientists serve as boundary spanners, stepping in to help when government agencies and other institutions lack sufficient staff or resources. While community scientists effectively support environmental research and management by serving as additional observers in the field, their dynamic role raises important questions about relying on volunteers to fill institutional capacity gaps. These findings offer practical insights for improving how researchers and government agencies can work with community scientists to address environmental challenges in social-ecological systems. Community scientists help governmental agencies and institutions to fill capacity gaps by supporting environmental research, education, and enforcement activities, serving as additional observers in the field, according to an analysis that combines semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Unlocking transformative change

  2025-05-20

  book-chapterOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Wicked sustainability challenges require transformative change that will only occur through a combination of individual and collective action. In this chapter, we suggest that cultural ecosystem services (CES) support collective environmental action that can lead to transformative change in ecosystems and culture. The chapter reviews research focused on CES related to place connections (mainly, sense of place) and how place connections influence place-protective behaviors. A conceptual model is presented that depicts the relationships among ecosystems, CES, and collective action as a reinforcing loop that can create a pathway to transformative change. To illustrate this relationship, we share interview data from a case study in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, USA, that examines collective environmental action in support of a transition to renewable energy. The chapter concludes by advocating for increased research on the linkages between CES and collective environmental action, positioning these services as potential catalysts for transformative change.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Collective action impacts on climate change mitigation

  Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences · 2025-03-08 · 12 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  To address climate change, we need immediate and sustained collective action at multiple scales. In this short, narrative review, we examine recent research on collective action to mitigate climate change (referred to as collective climate action). We explore the conceptualization of climate change as a collective action problem and review documented interventions and outcomes. Although researchers have made progress in understanding what drives collective climate action, gaps remain in evaluating practical interventions and measuring long-term impacts. Opportunities exist for future interdisciplinary research to bridge individual and collective approaches, improve outcome measurement, and design interventions that can more effectively promote collective action to address climate change. • Climate change is a collective action problem. • Collective action is required for climate change mitigation. • Interdisciplinary approaches improve understanding of collective climate action. • Gaps remain in measuring the impacts of collective climate action.

  PublisherDOI

• Adolescent psychological health, temporal discounting, and climate distress under increased flood exposure in Bangladesh: a mixed-methods cross-sectional study

  The Lancet Planetary Health · 2025-07-01

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Chronic exposure to climate stress disproportionately affects low-income households; however, the psychological health and climate distress levels of climate-vulnerable adolescents in low-resource settings has rarely been explored. We investigated the association between increased flood exposure and adolescent psychological health, climate distress, and temporal discounting (long-term planning capacity). METHODS: In this cross-sectional, mixed-methods study, we administered surveys to assess symptoms of anxiety and depression, temporal discounting, and climate distress. We surveyed 1200 adolescents aged 15-18 years from low-income households in Dhaka, Bangladesh (a low-flood-risk location) and Barisal, Bangladesh (a high-flood-risk location). We also conducted 16 focus group discussions among adolescents across both regions. FINDINGS: Between Aug 7 and Dec 15, 2023, adolescents living under higher flood exposure in Barisal had significantly greater odds of anxiety symptoms (adjusted odds ratio 1·94 [95% CI 1·41-2·65], p<0·0001) and depressive symptoms (3·52 [1·94-6·40], p<0·0001) relative to those under low flood exposure in Dhaka. Adolescents experiencing anxiety symptoms had significantly greater odds of exhibiting temporal discounting (2·00 [1·16-3·45], p=0·013). Our focus group discussions suggest pathways by which cognitive overload during extreme floods contribute to adolescent preferences against long-term flood adaptation planning. INTERPRETATION: An increased prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms among flood-vulnerable adolescents in low-income settings might be related to temporal discounting behaviour that could threaten their climate change resilience. FUNDING: School of Medicine, Woods Institute for the Environment, and Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University, and the National Geographic Society.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Catalyzing collective imagination for sustainability transformations: A complex systems analysis of collaborative climate fiction writing

  The Journal of Environmental Education · 2025-04-08 · 1 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Effects of anthropogenic noise on marine mammal abundances informed by mixed methods

  npj Ocean Sustainability · 2025-04-05

  articleOpen access

  This mixed-methods study examined the decline of a Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulina) colony’s abundance in Pacific Grove, California, USA, documented by community scientists. We combined generalized additive modeling (GAM) of abundance trends from 2003 to 2023 with qualitative analysis of Local Ecological Knowledge (LEK) obtained through interviews. LEK identified various anthropogenic disturbances that may have contributed to the colony’s decline. Statistical analysis revealed that, in 2022 and 2023, Harbor Seal abundance was 29.81% lower than expected, given the availability of prey fish in their forage range. Notably, roadwork near the colony during the 2022 pupping season likely impacted reproductive success and reduced habitat suitability, potentially impacting abundance. This study underscores the demographic impacts of human disturbances on marine mammals, the effectiveness of mixed-methods and community science in ecological research, and the critical need to mitigate disturbances to protect sensitive marine mammal populations, especially during critical periods like pupping seasons.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• Doctoral Dissertation Research in DRMS: Collective Efficiency Building

  NSF · $41k · 2016–2019

Frequent coauthors

• Rachelle K. Gould

  University of Vermont

  28 shared

• Marc J. Stern

  Virginia Tech

  17 shared

• Gabrielle Wong‐Parodi

  Palo Alto Institute

  15 shared

• Alison W. Bowers

  Stanford University

  15 shared

• Janel S. Schuh

  Stanford University

  13 shared

• Joe E. Heimlich

  13 shared

• Mele Wheaton

  Stanford University

  12 shared

• Kathleen O’Connor

  University of Pittsburgh

  11 shared

Labs

• Social Ecology LabPI

  Not provided

Education

• PhD, Social Ecology, School of Forestry and Environmental Studies

  Yale University

  2009

Awards & honors

• Emmett Family Faculty Scholar