38.37°N 141.06°EMatsushima Bay
Japan
Reflecting on coastal water systems and the safety provided by the hundreds of pine islands that serve as natural barriers to storms and tsunamis.
Research & Publications
A body of workat the frontier
First-author, top-tier publications spanning disaster risk reduction, human–nature interaction, nature-based solutions, and disaster education.
7Research papers, four published, three under review
4Q1 first-author papers in IJDRR, Sustainability and DPM
£55kCompetitive grants secured, plus £50k pending
8Field sites across Japan, Taiwan and the UK
Publications
Four published, three under review. Titles link to the full paper.
- 2026Published
Already an Injustice: Death Note and the Threshold Problem in Disaster Risk Ethics
Disaster Prevention and Management. M. Pawlik
- 2025Published
Supporting Sustainable Development Through Early-Life DRR Learning Opportunities: UK School Insights
Sustainability. M. Pawlik & K. Kitagawa
- 2025Published
Agent-based Modelling for Flood Evacuation as Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction: Pilot participatory action research with 11- and 12-year-old children from a Japanese school
International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction. M. Pawlik et al.
- 2024Published
Proposing Thematic Mapping for Integrated Risk Communication: A study of British & Japanese perspectives in flood-prone communities
International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction. M. Pawlik et al.
- 2026Under review
Fighting Rising Typhoon Intensity in Scarce Island Contexts: An Observational Study of Green Island, Taiwan
Island Studies Journal. M. Pawlik
- 2026Under review
IDRiM 2026 Bali, Indonesia Reflections: Humanitarian Service as a Solution to Rising Risk Profile
IDRiM Journal. M. Pawlik & G Dewi Narwastuti
- 2026Under review
The Third Function: Ecological Posthumanism in London's Botanical Gardens
People and Nature. M. Pawlik
Grants & awards
£55,000 in competitive funding secured, a further £50,000 pending, and recognition along the way.
£50,000 Pending
Research & Development Enabling Grant
Institution of Civil Engineers, 2026 to 2028
£50,000
Impact Builder Grant
University of East London, 2023 to 2024
£2,500
Standard Travel Grant
Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation, 2025 to 2026
£2,500
Student Fieldwork Grant
British Association for International & Comparative Education, 2025 to 2026
Honours
- 2023
Young Scientist Award, 5th place
13th IDRiM Conference, Roorkee, India (online)
- 2021
Gold Passport Award
Royal Holloway, University of London
The university's highest student honour.
- 2017
Commendation for best speaker on climate change
Trust for Sustainable Living, Oxford
Comparative fieldwork
Eight field sites across Japan, Taiwan and the UK since 2022: coasts, rivers, islands, mountains and cities.
38.37°N 141.06°E35.01°N 135.77°EKyoto City
Japan
Riverine water systems, traditional ecological knowledge, and the cultural dimensions of disaster preparedness in historic Japan.
56.21°N 4.81°WThe Cobbler
Scotland, UK
Tracing water sources in the mountains, reviewing land topography to better understand human-nature interactions.
Every field site
- Sept 2026
Green Island
Taiwan
- Mar to Apr 2026
Glasgow
Scotland, UK
- Dec 2025 to Jan 2026
Kyoto, with Sendai
Japan
- Oct to Nov 2023
Wakayama
Japan
- Mar 2023
Inami and Minamiawaji, with Osaka
Japan
- Nov 2022
Egham and Sturmer
England, UK
Consultancy & advisory
Where my research feeds into policy, organisations and the wider research community.
- 2026
Early Career Researcher Resource Portal
UK Alliance for Disaster Research
Developed a resource portal for early career disaster risk researchers on behalf of UKADR.
- 2026
Expert contribution, survey on nature-based solutions for disaster risk reduction
UNESCO
- 2025
Advisory conversation on public risk and preparedness communications
Societal Resilience Team, COBR Directorate, Cabinet Office
The work, in pictures
What a research week actually looks like.
