Dr Matteo Giusti
IFS, University of Surrey
 |
 |
Matteo is a Future Fellow in Sustainability Science at the University of Surrey. He investigates human-nature relationships at the individual and social scale to understand the spatial and cultural determinants that can regenerate modern civilizations towards a sustainable future.
Matteo is driven by research questions that have transformative potential. How can we nurture our relationship with nature to drive a sustainable transformation? How does the green and blue infrastructure can contribute to this transformation? Which values, expectations, or traditions are (in)compatible with a (un)sustainable idea of human progress?
His research is interdisciplinary and solution-oriented, blending sustainability science, systems thinking, environmental psychology, and spatial analysis in multi-method studies. He collaborates with artists, educational institutes, architecture firms, and planning offices to put his research into practical use.
Work w/ CUSP
Under the working title of Unlocking Sustainable Systems: Crafting Sustainability-as-Usual in Human Systems, Matteo is investigating the transformative potential of paradigm shifting leverage points—such as reconnecting human societies with the biosphere, moving from individualism and competition to mutualism and cooperation, and promoting wellbeing over marketisation of human desires. Matteo’s work uses system-based and transdisciplinary research to support this paradigmatic shift across all sectors of society.
How can we reconnect people with nature? What are the degenerative assumptions embedded in different human systems? How can we inspire and implement a regenerative mindset in the same systems? These are some of the questions that guides Matteo’s research, writing, and public speaking.
Selected Publications
Giusti M and K Samuelsson 2023. Evaluation of a smartphone-based methodology that integrates long-term tracking of mobility, place experiences, heart rate variability, and subjective well-being. Heliyon 9, e15751.
Giusti M, Dawkins E and F Lambe 2022. Valuing Nature as Individuals and Communities. In Stockholm+50: Unlocking a Better Future (Stockholm Environment Institute). doi:10.51414/sei2022.011.
Giusti M and K Samuelsson 2020. The regenerative compatibility: A synergy between healthy ecosystems, environmental attitudes, and restorative experiences. PLOS ONE 15, e0227311.
Giusti M 2019. Human-nature relationships in context. Experiential, psychological, and contextual dimensions that shape children’s desire to protect nature. PLOS ONE 14, e0225951.
Giusti M, Svane U, Raymond C M and T A Beery 2018. A Framework to Assess Where and How Children Connect to Nature. Front. Psychol. 8.