As an Associate Professor of Sociology and Environmental Studies at University of Oregon, Kari Norgaard is actively researching the social organization of denial, especially regarding climate change. Over the past 10 years Dr. Norgaard has published and taught in the areas of environmental sociology, sociology of culture, and sociology of emotions. This expertise led her to write a book, Living in Denial: Climate Change, Emotions and Everyday Life, which examines why public response to climate disruption in Western nations has been meager.

Norgaard earned her B.S. in biology from Humboldt State University, her M.A. in sociology from Washington State University, and her Ph.D. in sociology from University of Oregon.