Assistant Professor of Sociology and Public Policy Studies

Vanderbilt University

About

I am an environmental sociologist at Vanderbilt University. My research and teaching address questions at the intersection of structural inequality, development processes, and environmental change. My work engages scholarship in the fields of environmental sociology, environmental justice, climate justice, critical theories of race, energy transitions and technological displacement, and socio-ecological systems. I currently teach Environment and Society, Environmental Inequality and Justice, and The Social Contexts of Public Policy.

Interests

Environmental Sociology
Environmental Justice
Climate Justice
Energy Use
Socio-ecological Systems

Education

Ph.D in Sociology, 2018
University of Oregon
MS in Sociology, 2015
University of Oregon
BA in Poltics and Policy, 2013
Washington State University

Featured Publications

Envisioning Disabled and Just Futures- Mutual Aid as an Adaptive Strategy for Environmental Change and Ecological Disablement

Mutual aid networks of care offer models of local level adaptive strategies in the face of mass disabling events such as climate change and biodiversity loss.

Rachel G. McKane, David N. Pellow, Patrick Trent Greiner

PDF DOI

Envisioning Disabled and Just Futures- Mutual Aid as an Adaptive Strategy for Environmental Change and Ecological Disablement

Social Inequalities, Environmental Crises, and the the STIRPAT Model

Here, we consider how one prominent model of the anthropogenic forces driving environmental impacts, the STIRPAT model, incorporates considerations of inequalities. Our assessment includes exploring STIRPAT’s limitations and ways in which it can be improved.

Patrick Trent Greiner, Julius Alexander McGee, Richard York

Source Document DOI

Social Inequalities, Environmental Crises, and the the STIRPAT Model

Colonial contexts and the feasibility of mitigation through transition- A study of the impact of historical processes on the emissions dynamics of nation-states

Historical exposure to logics of extractive colonialism accounts for up to 11% of variation in emissions-development relationships across nations, and moderates the association that emissions per capita, emissions per dollar, and total emissions have with development.

Patrick Trent Greiner

PDF DOI

Colonial contexts and the feasibility of mitigation through transition- A study of the impact of historical processes on the emissions dynamics of nation-states

Does racism have inertia? A study of historic redlining's impact on present-day associations between development and air pollution in US cities

Historical redlining is associated with present day pollution, and intensifies the relationship between development and pollution as well.

Patrick Trent Greiner, Rachel G. McKane

PDF DOI

Does racism have inertia? A study of historic redlining's impact on present-day associations between development and air pollution in US cities

When are fossil fuels displaced? An exploratory inquiry into the role of nuclear electricity production in the displacement of fossil fuels.

Renewable sources of electricity do not displace fossil fuels over time across nations, though evidence of displacement is found in nuclear capable nations.

Patrick Trent Greiner, Richard York, Julius Alexander McGee

PDF DOI

When are fossil fuels displaced? An exploratory inquiry into the role of nuclear electricity production in the displacement of fossil fuels.

How colonialism's legacy makes it harder for countries to escape poverty and fossil fuels today

Can we find a way to lift nearly half of the world out of poverty and still reduce fossil fuel use? There can be no sustainable development, and likely no energy transition, if poverty is not addressed too.

Patrick Trent Greiner

Source Document

How colonialism's legacy makes it harder for countries to escape poverty and fossil fuels today

See all publications

Experience

Assistant Professor

Vanderbilt University

Aug 2018 – Present Nashville, TN

Responsibilities include research, service and committee work, and teaching the following courses:

Environment and Society
Environmental Justice and Inequality
Social Contexts of Public Policy

Graduate Research Fellow

National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC)

Oct 2017 – Oct 2019 Annapolis, MD

Participated in research that sought opportunities for dynamic conservation action in agricultural landscapes to promote temporary ecological connectivity on critical life stage and migratory routes of neotropical migratory bird species.

Graduate Teaching Fellow

University of Oregon

Sep 2013 – May 2018 Eugene, OR

Responsibilities included research, graduate program service, serving as graduate assistant for various courses, and sole instructor of record for the following courses:

Social Science Statistics
Social Science Research Methods

Contact

615-343-0224
111 Garland Hall, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37212
Wednesday 1:00 to 2:00
Friday 1:00 to 2:00
By Appt.

We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny…This is the inter-related structure of reality.- Martin Luther King, Jr. 1963