Dr. Max Nielsen-Pincus, an associate professor and department chair of Environmental Science and Management (ESM), has been a longtime member of the PSU community and understands what it takes to build lasting partnerships.
“I first came to PSU in 1978 when I was three years old while my mom was a student here,” Max jokes. “Then I took a big break from 1980 to 2013, during which I earned a PhD at the University of Idaho, held a research faculty position at the University of Oregon, and served as the director and coordinator for the Crooked River Water Council.” He returned to PSU in Fall 2013 as an assistant professor in ESM, where he has pursued research on wildfire risk and management.
Max’s research centers on the human aspects of environmental and natural resource management, particularly at the rural-urban interface in the Western U.S. He studies responses to wildfire risks at the individual, community, and regional levels, watershed management for drinking water, and land use changes in rapidly developing areas. However, his deepest interest lies in the big, existential questions—understanding the "how" and "why"—that can help society move towards a sustainable future.
Max explores these complex yet essential questions because they motivate him to work across disciplinary boundaries, using various research tools and methods to gather data and engage with communities.
“I’m a social scientist by training, though I consider myself more of an interdisciplinary social scientist,” says Max. His research has ranged from wildlife surveys in the field to dendrochronology, as well as conducting interviews, focus groups, and workshops with community members.
Eager to expand his collaborations beyond ESM, Max attended ISS social events, where he met other PSU researchers interested in cross-disciplinary partnerships. It was through these gatherings that he began working with Jennifer Allen, Heejun Chang, and Paul Loikith—relationships that grew from “speed dating research events” into lasting collaborations.
The School of Earth, Environment, and Society
Like ISS, the now-dissolved School of the Environment (SOE) provided a space for Max and his colleagues to connect, stay informed about projects and events, and explore potential partnerships across various disciplines.
Inspired by his past interdisciplinary work, Max and colleagues from Geography, Geology, and ESM had the opportunity to rethink and restructure their department programs, seeking new ways to reignite the excitement and energy that SOE had fostered.
After extensive discussions with CLAS faculty, department chairs, and workgroups, they developed a grant proposal to create a new school—the School of Earth, Environment, and Society (SEES), which now includes Anthropology and Complex Systems.
In Spring 2023, the proposal received near-unanimous approval. The value in SEES was crystal clear to administrative leaders.
Although engagement with students started much later, faculty were still met with enthusiasm and excitement about this new initiative. They crafted the school’s name using student feedback gathered from focus groups and interviews with students, alumni, and regional employers. “The reason for these focus groups was to find a name for the school,” says Max, “but it also gave students an opportunity to reflect on the school’s value. The feedback was incredibly positive, and there was a lot of excitement.”
The primary goal of SEES is to enhance student experiences and outcomes by encouraging interdisciplinary education and providing valuable programming opportunities—something that’s difficult for individual departments to achieve outside this collaborative framework.
Faculty also hope to develop a foundational course or series that all majors can participate in, exposing students to core principles and perspectives across disciplines. This would streamline their exploration of majors without requiring them to commit too early or redo courses.
For faculty, SEES offers opportunities for greater collaboration across units. Max notes that each unit might find areas where three separate hydrology classes are not needed. Instead, there could be only two hydrology classes, allowing a faculty member to channel their time and energy to something else, like teaching a different class or focusing on their research.
The school is set to officially launch in the fall of 2025 after a three-year long but engaging process that has built trust among faculty. During this challenging time at PSU, the approval process has given staff and faculty a sense of agency to co-create their vision for the future.
“This was a long but worthwhile process because we are now taking the initiative to ask ‘what do we want our future to look like?’ and ‘how do we drive that future?,’” Max explains. “Faculty are excited. Students are excited, and that’s why they come here–to have agency over their own education and futures.”
Roy W. Koch Award
In recognition of his key role in establishing the School of Earth, Environment, and Society (SEES) and his strong commitment to sustainability and student success, Dr. Max Nielsen-Pincus has been awarded the Roy W. Koch Award for Excellence in Sustainability Leadership. This award honors Max’s diligent efforts to advance sustainability through interdisciplinary collaboration and his belief that addressing complex environmental challenges requires diverse perspectives and collective action.
We are excited to congratulate Max on this well-deserved award and celebrate his leadership in sustainability at PSU and in SEES.