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Ms Jodie Bettis

Photo of Jodie Bettis.

Profile summary

  • Research Student
  • Research Student
  • Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences
  • School of Social Sciences & Global Studies
  • Geography
  • jodie.bettis

Professional biography

I am a Postgraduate Researcher and Grand Union Scholar in the School of Social Sciences & Global Studies. Funded by the Economic and Social Research Council of the UKRI, my research is interdisciplinary, currently combining geography, law and ecology to explore the theory and practice of ecocide law in a UK context.

I have worked in the environmental sector since 1996, having graduated from the Open University with a BSc Honours (Open) and a Diploma in Pollution Control whilst working as an analytical chemist in the contaminated land testing industry. I moved to the not-for-profit sector to work in environmental policy, first internationally at the UN-affiliated Stakeholder Form (UNED-UK) and then nationally at the umbrella organisation, Wildlife and Countryside Link (Link). I was awarded a distinction for my MA (Environment, Policy, & Society) dissertation entitled 'In Search of the Ecocentric Urbanite' in which I explored the recognition of the intrinsic value of nature in an urban wildlife area in south London. 

Research interests

I am interested in the criminalisation of ecosystem destruction through the introduction of ecocide law. Given the incentive afforded by the climate and ecological emergency, there is a case for preparations for the introduction of such a law to be conducted using empirical evidence and stakeholder engagement. By exploring concepts of nature rights and green criminology, my research aims to define the principles of ecocide, review ecocide law in different geographic contexts, and assess the barriers to criminalising ecocide in the UK. 

External collaborations

The Grand Union doctoral training partnership provides high-quality social science research training and opportunities to network, develop collaborations and share research with a range of audiences across the partnership between Brunel University London, the Open University and the University of Oxford. I am a Globalisation, Development and Local Knowledges researcher on the Geography pathway (2020 cohort) and a former Co-Chair of the Grand Union Scholars Association (OU Branch).

Publications

Piloting The Spirit Of The Law Test: Quantifying Ecocide Law Codification in Post-Brexit Environmental Law (2023)
Bettis, Jodie
Postgraduate Research Poster Competition, The Open University

In search of the ecocentric urbanite: Recognition of the intrinsic value of an urban wildlife area by South London residents [D836 Student Dissertation] (2007)
Bettis, Jodie
The Open University, Milton Keynes