Rate My Professor Rebecca Gruby

Rebecca Gruby is the Robert K. Johnson Professor of Marine Conservation in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy at the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science, where she joined as a professor in 2023. She also serves as the Founding Director of the Robert K. Johnson Center for Marine Conservation. Prior to her appointment at the University of Miami, Gruby held the position of Associate Professor from 2019 to 2023 and Assistant Professor from 2013 to 2019 in the Department of Human Dimensions of Natural Resources at Colorado State University. Earlier in her career, she worked as a Research Associate at the Environmental Law Institute from 2006 to 2008. Gruby earned her Ph.D. in Environment from Duke University in 2013, with fields in environmental governance and marine conservation, and a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resource Conservation from the University of Florida in 2006, with minors in English and Agriculture and Natural Resource Ethics and Policy.

As a social scientist with interdisciplinary training in environmental governance, Gruby's research centers on transformations in marine governance to advance ocean sustainability and human well-being. Her areas of focus include marine protected areas, small-scale fisheries, the blue economy, and ocean philanthropy. She has produced influential peer-reviewed publications, including 'Polycentric systems of governance: A theoretical model for the commons' (Policy Studies Journal, 2019), 'Blue economy and competing discourses in international oceans governance' (The Journal of Environment & Development, 2015), 'Six modes of co-production for sustainability' (Nature Sustainability, 2021), 'Co-productive agility and four collaborative pathways to sustainability transformations' (Global Environmental Change, 2022), and 'Multi-level governance for large marine commons: Politics and polycentricity in Palau’s protected area network' (Environmental Science & Policy, 2013). Other notable works encompass 'Toward a Social Science Research Agenda for Large Marine Protected Areas' (Conservation Letters, 2016) and contributions to research reports on large-scale marine protected area management. Gruby has received the Outstanding Publication Award from Colorado State University's Warner College of Natural Resources in 2017 and 2018, the Dean’s Award for Excellence to an Early Career Faculty Member in 2016, and several undergraduate awards from the University of Florida in 2006. Her scholarship has shaped discussions on polycentric governance, human dimensions of conservation, and co-production in environmental sustainability.