Alex Midlen

The making of a global blue economy 'governmentality': understanding space and power in the blue economy

Alex is a DPhil candidate in Geography and the Environment and a Green Templeton College Scholar, studying governance of the Blue Economy – a new sustainable development paradigm being promoted in support of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The research will focus on power relations and more-than-human entanglements immanent to the blue economy discourse and its implementation in small island and least developed coastal states.

Alex graduated from the School and Geography and Environment’s Nature, Society and Environmental Governance MSc, with Distinction, in 2019 following a career in environmental policy and governance working in local government and the NGO sector in the UK and continental Europe. Alex’s work has encompassed marine protected area implementation, inshore fisheries management, protected landscapes, integrated coastal zone management, urban regeneration, and climate change adaptation and mitigation. As well as writing policy, Alex has successfully secured many EU grants for public policy innovation.

Before his local government career Alex graduated from Queen Mary College, University of London with a BSc in Environmental Biology, going on to work as a commercial fisherman and fish farmer then gaining an MSc in Aquaculture and Fisheries Management from University of Stirling. After graduating, Alex worked at the University’s Institute of Aquaculture to support UK aid programmes in Bangladesh and Thailand.

Alongside his DPhil work, Alex provides consultancy support to multi-sector partnerships in developing bids for EU funding, and supporting project implementation with project management and expert technical advice. Current programmes include Mediterranean marine protected areas and small scale fisheries, urban re-wilding and green infrastructure management, and urban climate change strategies.

Books

• Midlen, A. and Redding, T. (1998) Environmental Management for Aquaculture. Springer, Netherlands. pp. 224. ISBN: 978-0-412-59500-4.

Journal Articles

• Midlen, A. (2021) What is the Blue Economy? A spatialised governmentality perspective. Maritime Studies.