Dr Oliver Fritsch
Ph.D., Aarhus University, Denmark

Office

• Building 335, Office 3-044A

Degrees

• Ph.D. (Environmental Social Science), Aarhus University, Denmark
• M.A. (Political Science), University of Leipzig, Germany
• Study abroad (Political Science), Stockholm University, Sweden

• ENV328 Environmental Policy and Law
• ENV552 Comparative Environmental Policy and Law
  
• ENV556 Principles of Environmental Impact Assessment
• ENV616 Environmental Policy for the 21st Century
  

I specialise in environmental policy and planning, with a particular focus on water resources, local and regional transport, and energy. Research areas include the role of cost-benefit analysis and environmental analysis, public participation and stakeholder involvement, as well as transboundary problems. On the other hand, I maintain a strong interest in regulatory impact assessment and other forms of ex-ante policy appraisal, including the important role of regulatory oversight bodies. I study these topics with a focus on Australia, the European Union, Germany, the Indo-Pacific region as well as the United Kingdom.

Status: Accepting new graduate students.

I gladly take on new Honours, Masters or Ph.D. students, in particular in the following areas:

• Environmental policy, politics and planning
• Sustainability
• Water resources
• Regulatory impact assessment and policy appraisal
• Climate and environmental impact assessment
• Regulation, regulatory reform and regulatory oversight

Google Scholar profile

• Please see here.

Research monograph

• Benson, David,  Fritsch, Oliver & Gain, Animesh (2023) “A Research Agenda for Water Policy: Process, Sectoral Interaction and Learning, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar (forthcoming)
  

Edited volumes

• Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (eds.) (2023) “Handbook of the Governance and Politics of Water Resources”, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar (forthcoming)
  
• Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (eds.) (2020) “Governing Integrated Water Resources Management: Mutual Learning and Policy Transfer”, Basel: MDPI

Special issues

• Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (eds.) (2019) “Governing Integrated Water Resources Management: Mutual Learning and Policy Transfer”, Water – Special Issue, https://www.mdpi.com/journal/water/special_issues/governing?view=compact&listby=date)

Journal articles

• Fritsch, Oliver,  Benson, David,  Adelle, Camilla & Massot, Audrey (2020) “Three Faces of the European Union Water Initiative: Promoting the Water Framework Directive or Sustainable Development?”, Water Alternatives 13(3): 709-730, Link: Download
• Wesselink, Anna,  Fritsch, Oliver & Paavola, Jouni (2020) “Earth System Governance for Transformation towards Sustainable Deltas: What Does Research into Socio-Eco-Technological Systems Tell Us?”, Earth System Governance 4: 1-10, DOI: 10.1016/j.esg.2020.100062
  
• Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (2019) “Mutual Learning and Policy Transfer in Integrated Water Resources Management: a Research Agenda”, Water 12(1): 72, DOI: 10.3390/w12010072
  
• Fritsch, Oliver (2019) “Participatory Water Governance and Organisational Change: Implementing the Water Framework Directive in England and Wales”, Water 11(5): 996, DOI: 10.3390/w11050996
• Boeuf, Blandine,  Fritsch, Oliver & Martin-Ortega, Julia (2018) “Justifying Exemptions through Policy Appraisal: Ecological Ambitions and Water Policy in France and the United Kingdom”, Water Policy 20(3): 647-666, DOI: 10.2166/wp.2018.108
• Benson, David,  Fritsch, Oliver & Langstaff, Linda (2018) “Local Flood Risk Management Strategies in England: Patterns of Application”, Journal of Flood Risk Management 11(S2): S827-837, DOI: 10.1111/jfr3.12264
• Fritsch, Oliver,  Kamkhaji, Jonathan & Radaelli, Claudio (2017) “Explaining the Content of Regulatory Impact Assessment in the United Kingdom: Learning across Time, Sectors, and Departments”, Regulation & Governance 11(4): 325-342, DOI: 10.1111/rego.12129
• Fritsch, Oliver (2017) “Integrated and Adaptive Water Resources Management: Exploring Participatory Governance in the UK”, Regional Environmental Change 17: 1933-1944, DOI: 10.1007/s10113-016-0973-8
• Fritsch, Oliver , Adelle, Camilla & Benson, David (2017) “The EU Water Initiative at 15: Origins, Processes and Assessment”, Water International 42(4): 425-442, DOI: 10.1080/02508060.2017.1330816
• Ziv, Guy,  Mullin, Karen,  Boeuf, Blandine,  Fincham, William,  Taylor, Nigel,  Villalobos-Jiménez, Giovanna,  von Vittorelli, Laura,  Wolf, Christine,  Fritsch, Oliver,  Strauch, Michael,  Seppelt, Ralf,  Volk, Martin & Beckmann, Michael (2016) “Water Quality is a Poor Predictor of Recreational Hotspots in England”, PLOS ONE 11(11), DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0166950
• Boeuf, Blandine,  Fritsch, Oliver & Martin-Ortega, Julia (2016) “Undermining European Environmental Policy Goals? The EU Water Framework Directive and the Politics of Exemptions”, Water 8(9): 388, DOI: 10.3390/w8090388
• Boeuf, Blandine & Fritsch, Oliver (2016) “Studying the Implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive in Europe: a Meta-Analysis of 89 Journal Articles”, Ecology & Society 21(2): 19, DOI: 10.5751/ES-08411-210219
• Jager, Nicolas,  Challies, Edward,  Kochskämper, Elisa,  Newig, Jens,  Benson, David,  Blackstock, Kirsty,  Collins, Kevin,  Ernst, Anna,  Evers, Mariele,  Feichtinger, Judith,  Fritsch, Oliver,  Gooch, Geoffrey,  Grund, Wiebke,  Hedelin, Beatrice,  Hernández-Mora, Nuria,  Hüesker, Frank,  Huitema, Dave,  Irvine, Kenneth,  Klinke, Andreas,  Lange, Leonie,  Loupsans, Delphine,  Lubell, Mark,  Maganda, Carmen,  Matczak, Piotr,  Páres, Marc,  Saarikoski, Heli,  Slavíková, Lenka,  van der Arend, Sonja & von Korff, Yorck (2016) “Transforming European Water Governance? Participation and River Basin Management under the EU Water Framework Directive in 13 Member States”, Water 8(4) 156, DOI: 10.3390/w8040156
• Dunlop, Claire,  Fritsch, Oliver & Radaelli, Claudio (2014) “The Appraisal of Policy Appraisal: Learning and the Quality of Impact Assessment (Évaluation de l’évaluation des politiques: Leçons à tirer de l’analyse d’impact)”, Revue Francaise d’Administration Publique 149(1): 163-178, DOI: 10.3917/rfap.149.016
• Benson, David,  Fritsch, Oliver,  Cook, Hadrian & Schmid, Marylise (2014) “Evaluating Participation in WFD River Basin Management in England and Wales: Process, Communities, Outputs and Outcomes”, Land Use Policy 38: 213-222, DOI: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2013.11.004
• Fritsch, Oliver,  Radaelli, Claudio,  Schrefler, Lorna & Renda, Andrea (2013) “Comparing the Content of Regulatory Impact Assessments in the UK and the EU”, Public Money & Management 33(6): 445-452, DOI: 10.1080/09540962.2013.836007
• Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (2013) “Integrated or ‘Integrating’ Water Resources Management? River Basin Planning in England and Wales”, International Journal of Water Governance 1(3-4): 265-284, DOI: 10.7564/13-IJWG7
• Radaelli, Claudio,  Dunlop, Claire & Fritsch, Oliver (2013) “Narrating Impact Assessments in the European Union”, European Political Science 12(4): 500-521, DOI: 10.1057/eps.2013.26
• Wesselink, Anna,  Paavola, Jouni,  Fritsch, Oliver & Renn, Ortwin (2011) “Rationales for Public Participation in Environmental Policy and Governance: Practitioners’ Perspectives”, Environment and Planning A 43(11): 2688-2704, DOI: 10.1068/a44161
• Wright, Stuart & Fritsch, Oliver (2011) “Operationalising Active Involvement in the Water Framework Directive: Why, When and How?”, Ecological Economics 70(12): 2268-2274, DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2011.07.023
• Newig, Jens & Fritsch, Oliver (2011) “Desire and Reality: Does Participation Bring about ‘Good’ Environmental Decisions? (Wunsch und Wirklichkeit: Befördert Partizipation umweltpolitisch ‚gute’ Entscheidungen?”, Wissenschaft & Umwelt Interdisziplinär 14: 206-211, Link: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-406795
• Roggero, Matteo & Fritsch, Oliver (2010) “Mind the Costs: Rescaling and Multi-Level Environmental Governance in Venice Lagoon”, Environmental Management 46(1): 17-28, DOI: 10.1007/s00267-010-9449-7
• Newig, Jens & Fritsch, Oliver (2009) “Environmental Governance: Participatory, Multi-Level – and Effective?”, Environmental Policy and Governance 19(3): 197-214, DOI: 10.1002/eet.509

Book chapters

• Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (2023) “The European Union Water Initiative”, in Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (eds.) Handbook of the Governance and Politics of Water Resources, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar (forthcoming)
• Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (2023) “Introduction”, in Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (eds.) Handbook of the Governance and Politics of Water Resources, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar (forthcoming)
• Fritsch, Oliver (2022) “Terrestrial Aquatic Environments and Sustainable Development Governance”, in: Russel, Duncan (ed.) Handbook on the Governance of Sustainable Development, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 115-130
  
• Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (2019) “Mutual Learning and Policy Transfer in Integrated Water Resources Management: a Research Agenda”, in: Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (eds.) Governing Integrated Water Resources Management: Mutual Learning and Policy Transfer, Basel: MDPI, 1-13
• Fritsch, Oliver (2019) “Participatory Water Governance and Organisational Change: Implementing the Water Framework Directive in England and Wales”, in: Fritsch, Oliver & Benson, David (eds.) Governing Integrated Water Resources Management: Mutual Learning and Policy Transfer, Basel: MDPI, 105-121
  
• Fritsch, Oliver & Kamkhaji, Jonathan (2016) “Implementing in the Laboratory: Scorecards for Appraising Regulatory Impact Assessments”, in: Dunlop, Claire & Radaelli, Claudio (eds.) Handbook of Regulatory Impact Assessment, Cheltenham: Edward Elgar: 399-411
• Fritsch, Oliver & Newig, Jens (2012) “Participatory Governance and Sustainability: Findings of a Meta-Analysis of Stakeholder Involvement in Environmental Decision-Making”, in: Brousseau, Eric, Dedeurwaerdere, Tom & Siebenhüner, Bernd (eds.) Reflexive Governance for Global Public Goods, Cambridge: MIT Press: 181-203
• Newig, Jens & Fritsch, Oliver (2011) “Ökologische Nachhaltigkeit durch zivilgesellschaftliche Partizipation? Zum Stand der Debatte in der internationalen Literatur (Ecological Sustainability through Civil-Societal Participation? Reviewing the International Literature)”, in: Handler, Martina & Trattnigg, Rita (eds.) Zukunft der Öffentlichkeitsbeteiligung: Chancen, Grenzen, Herausforderungen (The Future of Public Participation: Opportunities, Limits, Challenges),Vienna: Österreichische Gesellschaft für Umwelt und Technik: 55-64
• Fisher, Dana,  Fritsch, Oliver & Andersen, Mikael Skou (2009) “Transformations in Environmental Governance and Participation”, in: Mol, Arthur P. J.,  Sonnenfeld, David A. & Spaargaren, Gert (eds.) The Ecological Modernization Reader: Environmental Reform in Theory and Practice, London: Routledge: 141-155
• Newig, Jens & Fritsch, Oliver (2009) “More Input – Better Output: Does Citizen Involvement Improve the Quality, Legitimacy and Implementability of Environmental Policy?”, in: Blühdorn, Ingolfur (ed.) In Search of Legitimacy: Policy Making in Europe and the Challenge of Complexity, Opladen: Budrich: 205-224
• Newig, Jens & Fritsch, Oliver (2008) “Der Beitrag zivilgesellschaftlicher Partizipation zur Effektivitätssteigerung von Governance: eine Analyse umweltpolitischer Beteiligungsverfahren im transatlantischen Vergleich (The Contribution of Civil Society Participation to Enhancing Governance Effectiveness: a Transatlantic Comparison of Environmental Participatory Decision-Making)”, in: Bode, Ingo,  Evers, Adalbert & Klein, Ansgar (eds.) Bürgergesellschaft als Projekt: eine Bestandsaufnahme zu Entwicklung und Förderung zivilgesellschaftlicher Potenziale in Deutschland (Civil Society as a Project: Taking Stock of Civil-Societal Potentials in Germany), Wiesbaden: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften: 214-239

Published working papers

• Newig, Jens,  Adzersen, Ana,  Challies, Edward,  Fritsch, Oliver & Jager, Nicolas (2013) “Comparative Analysis of Public Environmental Decision-Making Processes – a Variable-Based Analytical Scheme”, Institute for Environmental Communication (INFU) Discussion Paper Series No. 37/13, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Lüneburg, Germany
• Fritsch, Oliver,  Radaelli, Claudio,  Schrefler, Lorna & Renda, Andrea (2012) “Regulatory Quality in the European Union and the United Kingdom: Old Questions and New Findings”, Centre for European Policy Studies Working Paper 362, Brussels, Belgium
• Fritsch, Oliver & Newig, Jens (2008) “Under Which Conditions Does Public Participation Really Advance Sustainability Goals? Findings of a Meta-Analysis of Stakeholder Involvement in Environmental Decision Making”, Reflexive Governance in the Public Interest Working Paper REFGOV-GPS-13, Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium
• Newig, Jens & Fritsch, Oliver (2008) “Environmental Governance: Participatory, Multi-Level – and Effective?”, Multi-Level Governance of Natural Resources (GoverNat) Discussion Paper 8, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research – UFZ, Leipzig, Germany