John Pearce

John Pearce is a PhD student at the University of Queensland supervised by Kelly Fielding and Angela Dean. His research explores how storytelling can be used as a tool in climate and environmental communication to help people understand complex environmental issues and encourage pro-environmental behaviour.

John’s work sits at the intersection of environmental communication, psychology, and behaviour change, with a focus on how narratives shape the way people engage with climate change and conservation challenges.

Prior to his PhD, John worked in destination marketing, community engagement, and sustainability education. These experiences provided practical insight into the communication challenges faced by practitioners seeking to balance economic priorities with long-term environmental sustainability. His research aims to bridge theory and practice by exploring how storytelling approaches can support more effective communication of environmental and conservation issues.

Selected publication:

Pearce, J., & Moscardo, G. (2025). Exploring the Rise of Eco/Green Psychology Concepts in Understanding Sustainable Action. Sustainability, 17(10), 4373. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17104373

UQ Report:

Pearce, John, Eyibio, Uduak, Thomas, Simon, Cabrera Aguilar, Ariel, and Do, Kim Quoc (2025). Examining the impact of Queensland Fire and Biodiversity Consortium’s capacity building through workshops. St Lucia, QLD Australia: The University of Queensland. https://doi.org/10.14264/1d02700