Areas of expertise
- Environmental Policy
- Managing Corporate Sustainability
- Natural Capital
- Waste Management and Resource Efficiency
Background
Dr Kenisha Garnett is an expert in futures analysis, strategic risk assessment, and stakeholder and public engagement. Her research focuses on developing robust foresight methodologies that link evidence-based strategic risk with value judgements to inform futures analyses, with a particular emphasis on assessing system resilience and the robustness of public sector policies and strategies. Her work supports policy organisations to better understand future challenges and opportunities and to translate foresight outputs into concrete actions.
Kenisha has led the development of medium- and large-scale scenario projects and delivered horizon scanning programmes for UK and international organisations, with a strong focus on the long-term sustainability of environmental and food systems. She works with organisations to develop strategic visions and roadmaps that identify policy options that perform best under desirable future scenarios, enabling decision-makers to champion plans for sustainability and innovation. Kenisha's expertise sits at the intersection of society and the environment, combining engineering and systems thinking with social science approaches and deliberative stakeholder engagement. Kenisha has extensive experience designing and delivering participatory processes that support inclusive decision-making, including engagement with diverse stakeholder groups. Recently, she has led interdisciplinary teams delivering foresight projects for the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE).
Kenisha has provided expert foresight advice to the UK Food Security Report 2024 and has served as a member of the European Food Safety Authority Expert Working Group on Emerging Risks in Food and Feed. She is a Member of the College of Experts at the Office for Environmental Protection and a Member of Defra’s Genetic Food Improvement Network Research Advisory Group. She is part of an international research consortium implementing annual cycles of the EU foresight system for the environment and is a member of the UK Government Office of Science / DSIT Futures Procurement Framework.
She holds a PhD in Waste Management Policy and Stakeholder Engagement, an MA in Social Science Research Methods, an MSc (Eng.) in Environmental Engineering and Project Management, and a BEng. in Civil Engineering.
Research opportunities
Long-term sustainability of complex systems (e.g. environment, food, science and technology, defence and security)
Futures, foresight, strategic risk assessment, stakeholder analyses
Emerging issues, trend analyses, tipping points and transformative change
Policy, strategy and organisational resilience.
Current activities
Ongoing and recent projects
2025. Conceptual framework for a semi-automated horizon scanning methology (case of AI risks and trends). Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT)
2024 - 2025. Shaping environmental policy in the pan-European region by applying foresight methodologies. United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). Funded by the Geneva Science Policy Interface.
2023 - 2027. Futures Framework. Department for Science, Innovation and Technology / Go-Science.
2023. Co-Creating Strategy for UK-Thailand Cooperation in Science, Research and Innovation (SRI). National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), Thailand.
2022 - ongoing. EU Foresight System for the Environment (FORENV) - annual horizon scanning cycles. Funded by European Commission (DG Environment).
2022 - 2026. NERC CENTA2 PhD studentship. Early warning system for food supply chain resilience to environmental disruption. Part-funded by UK Food Standards Agency and Food Standards Scotland.
2022 - 2025. Strategic foresight project. UK Government Agency.
2022 - 2025. NERC Knowledge Exchange Fellowship (job share). Identifying and delivering shared environmental solutions for plantation crops.
2022 - 2023. Future infrastructure implications. UK Government Agency.
2021 - 2022. Foresight for the Bio-circular Green Economy. Going Global Partnership Programme. Funded by British Council (Thailand).
2019 - 2020. Developing a research agenda on Foresight for Food in Thailand. Global Challenges Research Fund QR.
2019 - 2020. Decision tool to assess consequences of decisions implicit in future development plans: case of the Oxford-Cambridge Arc in the UK. Research England SPF.
2019 - 2020. Foresight for food; train the trainers project (Thailand). Food Innopolis. Funded through the British Council University-Industry Links Programme.
Clients
Recent
British Council Thailand
Food Innopolis
European Commission (DG Environment)
FCDO
Food Standards Agency / Food Standards Scotland
Previous
European Food Safety Agency (EFSA)
Defra
Environment Agency
Scottish Environmental Protection Agency
Natural Resources Wales
Welsh Government
CAMERAS
Syngenta
Publications
Articles In Journals
- Jones K, Njeru EM, Garnett K & Girkin NT. (2025). Organic management in coffee: a systematic review of the environmental, economic and social benefits and trade-offs for farmers. Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print)
- Jones K, Garnett K & Burgess PJ. (2025). Improving food supply chain resilience: a case study of chicken tikka masala. Environmental Research: Food Systems, 2(4)
- Pawlett M, Girkin NT, Deeks LK, Evans DL, Sakrabani R, .... (2024). The contribution of natural burials to soil ecosystem services: review and emergent research questions. Applied Soil Ecology, 194
- Jones K, Njeru EM, Garnett K & Girkin NT. (2024). Assessing the impact of voluntary certification schemes on future sustainable coffee production. Sustainability, 16(13)
- Garnett K, Wilson A & Wilkinson E. (2024). Using horizon scanning to build policy resilience: case of waste crime. Futures & Foresight Science, 7(1)
- Garnett K, Delgado JPC, Lickorish FA, Pollard SJT, Medina A, .... (2023). Future foods: Morphological scenarios to explore changes in the UK food system with implications for food safety across the food chain. Futures, 149(May)
- Sakrabani R, Garnett K, Knox JW, Rickson RJ, Pawlett M, .... (2023). Towards net zero in agriculture: future challenges and opportunities for arable, livestock and protected cropping systems in the UK. Outlook On Agriculture, 52(2)
- Luís A, Garnett K, Pollard SJT, Lickorish FA, Jude S, .... (2021). Fusing strategic risk and futures methods to inform long-term strategic planning: case of water utilities. Environment Systems and Decisions, 41(4)
- EFSA , Donohoe T, Garnett K, Lansink AO, Afonso A, .... (2018). Emerging risks identification on food and feed - EFSA. EFSA Journal, 16(7)
- Garnett K, Cooper T, Longhurst PJ, Jude S & Tyrrel S. (2017). A conceptual framework for negotiating public involvement in municipal waste management decision-making in the UK. Waste Management, 66
- Dagonneau J, Rocks SA, Prpich G, Garnett K, Black E, .... (2017). Strategic risk appraisal. Comparing expert- and literature-informed consequence assessments for environmental policy risks receiving national attention. Science of The Total Environment, 595
- Garnett K, Lickorish FA, Rocks SA, Prpich G, Rathe AA, .... (2016). Integrating horizon scanning and strategic risk prioritisation using a weight of evidence framework to inform policy decisions. Science of The Total Environment, 560-561
- Frijns J, Smith HM, Brouwer S, Garnett K, Elelman R, .... (2016). How Governance Regimes Shape the Implementation of Water Reuse Schemes. Water, 8(12)
- Garnett K & Parsons DJ. (2016). Multi-case review of the application of the precautionary principle in European Union Law and Case Law. Risk Analysis, 37(3)
- Henriques C, Garnett K, Weatherhead EK, Lickorish FA, Forrow D, .... (2015). The future water environment — Using scenarios to explore the significant water management challenges in England and Wales to 2050. Science of The Total Environment, 512-513
- Garnett K & Cooper T. (2014). Effective dialogue: Enhanced public engagement as a legitimising tool for municipal waste management decision-making. Waste Management, 34(12)
- Bramhall MD, Gray L, Corker C, Garnett K & Hill R. (2012). Analysis of Critical Thinking Skills in an International, Cross-Institutional Group of Engineering Master's Students. Industry and Higher Education, 26(4)
Conference Papers
- Gray L, Bramhall M, Corker C & Garnett K. (2012). Analysis of critical thinking skills of international masters students in engineering for a cross-institutional group
- Gray L, Bramhall M, Garnett K & Corker C. (2011). Analysis of critical thinking skills across an international, cross-institutional student group
- Elfving-Hwang J, Moore I & Garnett K. (2010). Skills development and lifelong learning.
- Garnett K & Moore I. (2010). The role of a Centre for Excellence in developing a scholarship of teaching based on pedagogical practice around learner autonomy.
- Moore I, Elfving-Hwang J & Garnett K. (2009). Developing Communities of Practice: the role of a Centre for Excellence in fostering staff communities
- Garnett K, Cooper T, Heath M & Cartwright G. (2008). Public involvement in local waste strategy development and facility planning: exploring opinions from stakeholder groups
- Garnett K, Cooper T, Heath M & Cartwright G. (2008). The expert-public interface in municipal waste management decision making: exploring opinions from stakeholder groups
Books
- Watson R, Garnett K & Borrelli R. (2025). Inclusive professional education for sustainability: the Cranfield MSc Sustainability In Śliwa M, Anderson L, Black K, Chaffer C & Webb J (eds), Handbook of Inclusive Learning and Teaching in Business and Management. Edward Elgar Publishing.
- Burgess P, den Herder M, Dupraz C, Garnett K, Giannitsopoulos M, .... (2018). AGFORWARD Project Final Report
- Burgess P, den Herder M, Dupraz C, Garnett K, Giannitsopoulos M, .... (2018). AGFORWARD Third Periodic Report: July 2016 to December 2017
- Burgess PJ, den HM, Dupraz C, Garcia DJS, Garnett K, .... (2016). AGFORWARD Second Periodic Report: January 2015 to June 2016.
- Moore I, Elfving-Hwang J, Garnett K & Corker C (eds). (2010). CPLA case studies: volume 1
- Mackenzie D, Cooper T & Garnett K. (2010). Can Durability Provide a Strong Marketing Platform? In Cooper T(ed.), Longer Lasting Solutions: Alternatives to the Throwaway Society. Gower Publishing Limited.
- Garnett K & Moore I. (2010). The CPLA small scale project scheme: an introduction In Bramhall M, O'Leary C & Corker C (eds), CPLA case studies: volume 2. Sheffield Hallam University. Centre for Promoting Learner Autonomy.
- Garnett K(ed.). (2009). CPLA: Centre for Promoting Learner Autonomy: A Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning: Case Studies Volume 1
