Rate My Professor Will Rifkin

Emeritus Professor Will Rifkin is an Emeritus Professor in the Newcastle Business School within the College of Human and Social Futures at the University of Newcastle, Australia. An engineer-turned-sociologist, he holds degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of California, Berkeley, and a PhD from Stanford University awarded in 1990 for his dissertation titled "Communication between technical and nontechnical people: the negotiation of expert status." His career history includes serving as Chair in Applied Regional Economics and Director of the Hunter Research Foundation Centre at the University of Newcastle from 2017 to 2020. Previously, he was Chair in Social Performance at the Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining and the Centre for Coal Seam Gas in the Sustainable Minerals Institute at the University of Queensland from 2012 to 2017, Honorary Associate Professor in the School of Physics at the University of Sydney from 2011 to 2016, and Director of the Science Communication Program in the Faculty of Science at the University of New South Wales from 2000 to 2010.

Will Rifkin's academic interests center on communication between technical and nontechnical audiences, science communication, organizational change, higher education, educational leadership, natural resource development, applied regional economics, and sustainability. His research has advanced understandings of stakeholder engagement and social licence to operate in resource sectors. Notable publications include "What makes stakeholder engagement in social licence 'meaningful'? Practitioners’ conceptualisations of dialogue" (2018), "Meaningful dialogue outcomes contribute to laying a foundation for social licence to operate" (2017), "Conceptualising the role of dialogue in social licence to operate" (2017), "Aboriginal engagement and agreement-making with a rapidly developing resource industry: Coal seam gas development in Australia" (2014), and "Prioritising indicators of cumulative socio-economic impacts to characterise rapid development of onshore gas resources" (2014). With 1,399 citations documented on ResearchGate, his work has influenced academic and practical approaches in these fields. Rifkin has lectured on science, management, science communication, and natural resource development, and he consults for governments, industries, and NGOs on circular economy and sustainability matters. He has contributed as a guest editor for special issues on transdisciplinary environment and communication perspectives.