Rate My Professor Jonathan Symons

Jonathan Symons is an Associate Professor in the School of International Studies at Macquarie University, Faculty of Arts, and Director of Research and Innovation for the school, where he teaches International Relations. He joined Macquarie University in July 2013 after serving as a Lecturer at La Trobe University in Melbourne and as an Assistant Professor at Lingnan University in Hong Kong. Symons earned his PhD in International Relations from the School of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Melbourne in December 2007. His academic career focuses on environmental politics and global climate policy, with expertise in the governance of solar geoengineering, engineering biology, carbon dioxide removal, low-carbon innovation, and processes of international norm change.

Symons has made significant contributions through his publications, including the books Ecomodernism: Technology, Politics and Climate Crisis (Polity, 2019), which offers a qualified defense of ecomodernism advocating for state investment in low-carbon technologies, and Queer Wars: The New Global Polarization over Gay Rights (co-authored with Dennis Altman, Polity, 2016), examining global divides over LGBTQI rights. Key recent works include 'Engineering biology and climate change mitigation: policy considerations' (Nature Communications, 2024), 'Australia, we need to talk about solar geoengineering' (Australian Journal of International Affairs, 2024), 'Global environmental politics' (Encyclopedia of the Anthropocene, Springer Nature, 2026), 'Ecological crises and ecopolitics research in Australia' (Australian Journal of Politics and History, 2025), and 'Seizing the means of innovation: on the relationship between Marxism and ecomodernism' (Political Geography, 2025). He received a Macquarie Research Acceleration Scheme grant in 2023 and was promoted to Associate Professor. Symons serves on the Advisory Board of RePlanet Europe since June 2022 and was a Council Member of the Australian Institute of International Affairs NSW from November 2021 to November 2023. His research influences discussions on climate mitigation strategies and international environmental governance.