dr. M (Mattijs) Smits

Mattijs Smits is Lecturer and Education Coordinator at the Environmental Policy Group of Wageningen University. In addition, he is Deputy Programme Director for the programmes related to Environment and Climate (BES, MES, MUE, MCL). He holds degrees from four different universities on three continents: a BSc and MSc from the University of Utrecht and Wageningen University, and PhD degrees from The University of Sydney and Chiang Mai University (as part of a cotutelle arrangement). During his early academic and professional career, he spent extended periods living and working as researcher and consultant in Southeast Asia, notably in Laos, Thailand and Vietnam. He currently researches in the fields of energy policy and politics, environment, sustainability, (rural) development and carbon markets in Southeast Asia. More recently, his research also includes EU and NWO projects on (urban) wind energy politics, digitalisation, and participation. In addition, he is involved in education innovation through NWO/NRO Comenius projects and university-funded innovation projects on skills trajectories and assessment. Finally, he is involved in international capacity building on environmental science and climate change education through EU Erasmus+ projects in Nepal and Sri Lanka (and previously also in Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar).