Brynhildur Davíðsdóttir (or Brynhildur Davidsdottir; born 29 July 1968) is a professor of environment and natural resources at the

University of Iceland The University of Iceland ( ) is a public research university in Reykjavík, Iceland, and the country's oldest and largest institution of higher education. Founded in 1911, it has grown steadily from a small civil servants' school to a modern co ...

, the academic director of th
Environment and Natural Resources
graduate programme as well as the director of

br>Arctic Initiative
Brynhildur, a native of

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

, originally studied biology and economics at

and later

System dynamics System dynamics (SD) is an approach to understanding the nonlinear behaviour of complex systems over time using stocks, flows, internal feedback loops, table functions and time delays. Overview System dynamics is a methodology and mathematical ...

in the context of climate change mitigation and energy transitions. Drawing on her background in biology and economics she also has focused on evaluation of

ecosystem services Ecosystem services are the various benefits that humans derive from Ecosystem, ecosystems. The interconnected Biotic_material, living and Abiotic, non-living components of the natural environment offer benefits such as pollination of crops, clean ...

in various contexts as well as sustainability indicators. In addition to her academic commitments, she actively participates in policy-making and sits currently on a government-appointed committee tasked to create future energy policy for Iceland. She has since 2008 been responsible for assessing greenhouse gas mitigation options for the Icelandic government, sits on the government-appointed science committee on climate change impact in Iceland, and is the vice chair of the Icelandic Climate Council. Brynhildur is an active board member of several foundations and companies. She is the chairman of the board of Reykjavik Energy, the second largest energy company in Iceland. Reykjavik Energy´s operation in Hellisheiði is the site of the CarbFix project In the CarbFix project, carbon dioxide is captured from the emissions from the geothermal power plant in Hellisheiði. It is then dissolved in water and injected into subsurface basalts. Research has confirmed that the injected becomes solidified into calcite in two years, effectively turning carbon dioxide into stone. Brynhildur also sits on the board of the

Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the northernmost of the five major circle of latitude, circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth at about 66° 34' N. Its southern counterpart is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circl ...

Foundation, which is a foundation that hosts one of the largest annual international gathering on the Arctic. In March 2020, Dr. Davidsdóttir was appointed to the Scottish

Council of Economic Advisers The Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) is a United States agency within the Executive Office of the President established in 1946, which advises the president of the United States on economic policy. The CEA provides much of the empirical resea ...

Academic career

Brynhildur completed a BS degree in biology from

in 1991, and a preparatory programme in to a degree in economics from University of Iceland in 1992. She completed a dual MS degree from

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

in International Relations and Environment and natural resource management and a PhD from

Center for Energy and Environmental Studies. After completing her PhD in 2002, she was an adjunct lecturer at

until 2005. She was a research associate at

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

College Park from 2004 - 2005, and an associate at Abt Associates Inc from 2004 to 2006. In 2006 she moved to

, and became a professor at

, tasked with building an international and interdisciplinary graduate programme focused on Environment and Natural Resources. In 2012, Brynhildur received the

´s highest honor for excellence in teaching and in 2018 was honored as the Scientist of the year by the Icelandic Science Academy.

Selected publications

Brynhildur's research has focused on four main areas;

energy transition An energy transition (or energy system transformation) is a major structural change to energy supply and consumption in an energy system. Currently, a transition to sustainable energy is underway to limit climate change. Most of the sustainab ...

climate change mitigation Climate change mitigation (or decarbonisation) is action to limit the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere that cause climate change. Climate change mitigation actions include energy conservation, conserving energy and Fossil fuel phase-out, repl ...

sustainability measurement Sustainability measurement is a set of frameworks or indicators used to measure how sustainable something is. This includes processes, products, services and businesses. Sustainability is difficult to quantify and it may even be impossible to mea ...

indicators and

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

services. D Cook, L Malinauskaite, B Davíðsdóttir, H Ögmundardóttir, J Roman, 2020,
Reflections on the ecosystem services of whales and valuing their contribution to human well-being,
''Ocean & Coastal Management 186, 105100.''
Reflections on the ecosystem services of whales and valuing their contribution to human well-being
N Spittler, B Davidsdottir, E Shafiei, J Leaver, EI Asgeirsson, H Stefansson, 2020,
The role of geothermal resources in sustainable power system planning in Iceland,
''Renewable Energy, 153: 1081-1090.'
The role of geothermal resources in sustainable power system planning in Iceland
E Shafiei, B Davidsdottir, H Stefansson, EI Asgeirsson, R Fazeli, M. Gestsson, J Leaver, 2019,
Simulation-based appraisal of tax-induced electro-mobility promotion in Iceland and prospects for energy-economic development,
''Energy Policy 133, 110894'
Simulation-based appraisal of tax-induced electro-mobility promotion in Iceland and prospects for energy-economic development
JÖG Jónsson, B Davíðsdóttir, NP Nikolaidis, GV Giannakis, 2019,
Tools for Sustainable Soil Management:
''Soil Ecosystem Services, EROI and Economic Analysis, Ecological Economics 157 (C), 109-119.'
Tools for Sustainable Soil Management: Soil Ecosystem Services, EROI and Economic Analysis
L Malinauskaite, D Cook, B Davíðsdóttir, H Ögmundardóttir, J Roman, 2019,
Ecosystem services in the Arctic: a thematic review,
''Ecosystem services 36, 100898'
Ecosystem services in the Arctic: a thematic review
D Cook, R Fazeli, B Davíðsdóttir, 2019,
The need for integrated valuation tools to support decision-making–The case of cultural ecosystem services sourced from geothermal areas,
''Ecosystem Services 37, 100923'
The need for integrated valuation tools to support decision-making – The case of cultural ecosystem services sourced from geothermal areas
Shafiei, E., B. Davidsdottir, R. Fazeli, J. Leaver, H. Stefansson, E.I. Asgeirsson, 2018,
Macroeconomic effects of fiscal incentives to promote electric vehicles in Iceland: Implications for government and consumer costs,
''Energy Policy, 114:431- 443.'
Macroeconomic effects of fiscal incentives to promote electric vehicles in Iceland: Implications for government and consumer costs
AM Eikeset, AB Mazzarella, B Davíðsdóttir, DH Klinger, SA Levin and N Stenseth, 2018,
What is blue growth? The semantics of “Sustainable Development” of marine environments,
''Marine Policy 87: 177-179.'
What is blue growth? The semantics of “Sustainable Development” of marine environments
Shafiei, E., B Davidsdottir, J Leaver, H Stefansson, EI Asgeirsson, 2017,
Energy, economic, and mitigation cost implications of transition toward a carbon-neutral transport sector: A simulation-based comparison between hydrogen and electricity,
''Journal of Cleaner Production 141, 237-247.'
Energy, economic, and mitigation cost implications of transition toward a carbon-neutral transport sector: A simulation-based comparison between hydrogen and electricity
Shortall R., B Davidsdottir, 2017,
How to measure national energy sustainability performance: An Icelandic case-study,
''Energy for Sustainable Development 39, 29-47.'
How to measure national energy sustainability performance: An Icelandic case-study
Jónsson JÖG, B Davíðsdóttir, NP Nikolaidis, 2017,
Valuation of Soil Ecosystem Services, Advances in Agronomy,
''vol: 142: 353-384.'
Advances in Agronomy
Cook D., NM Saviolidis, B Davíðsdóttir, L Jóhannsdóttir, 2017,
Measuring countries’ environmental sustainability performance—The development of a nation-specific indicator set, Ecological Indicators,
''74: 463-478.'
Measuring countries’ environmental sustainability performance—The development of a nation-specific indicator set
IEA, 2016,
Nordic Energy Technology Perspectives Pathways to a Carbon Neutral Energy Future, IEA and NER, Paris.
''(BD led the Icelandic team in this IEA effort).'
Nordic Energy Technology Perspectives 2016 – Nordic Energy Research
Shafiei, E., B Davidsdottir, J Leaver, H Stefansson, EI Asgeirsson, 2015,
Comparative analysis of hydrogen, biofuels and electricity transitional pathways to sustainable transport in a renewable-based energy system,
Energy 83:614-627
Macroeconomic effects of fiscal incentives to promote electric vehicles in Iceland: Implications for government and consumer costs

References

External links

University of Iceland Masters Programme in Environment and Natural Resources RES – The School for Renewable Energy ScienceBoston University Center for Energy and Environmental Studies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brynhildur Davidsdottir Davidsdottir, Brynhildur Davidsdottir, Brynhildur University of Iceland alumni Icelandic economists Davidsdottir, Brynhildur Boston University faculty Academic staff of the University of Iceland