James Meldrum

James Meldrum is a research economist in the Social and Economic Analysis Branch at the U.S. Geological Survey Fort Collins Science Center. Meldrum earned a PhD in environmental economics from the University of Colorado Environmental Studies Program in 2012, and his research experience spans the human dimensions of many natural resources (including water, energy, and non-timber forests) and hazards (including wildfire, floods, and invasive species).

Meldrum is an active member of WiRe (Wildfire Research), an interdisciplinary collaboration between researchers and practitioners focused on homeowner wildfire risk mitigation and community wildfire adaptedness. Through this group, Meldrum has led and contributed to numerous academic and applied publications on the relationship of wildland-urban interface residents with their wildfire risk. Meldrum also contributes to the USGS Sustaining Environmental Capital Initiative (SECI), a project to develop and enhance science and research on ecosystem services in support of improving natural resource management. Meldrum's general research approach is grounded in economics and informed by resilience and sustainability.