Skip to main content

Martin Doyle

Professor in the Environmental Sciences and Policy Division
Environmental Sciences and Policy
Environment Hall 3108, 9 Circuit Drive, Durham, NC 27708-0328
Environment Hall 3108, 9 Circuit Drive, Durham, NC 27708

Overview


Martin Doyle is a Professor at Duke University focused on the science and policy of rivers and water in the US.  His work ranges from fluid mechanics and sediment transport to infrastructure finance and federal water policy. His first book, The Source (WW Norton, February, 2018), is a history of America’s rivers.  His second book, Streams of Revenue (MIT Press, 2021) is an analysis of ecosystem markets. In addition to his role as a professor, Doyle has had several stints in government: in 2015-2016, he moved to the Department of Interior, where he helped establish the Natural Resources Investment Center, an initiative of the Obama Administration to push forward private investment in water infrastructure, enable water marketing, and increase the use of markets and conservation banks for species conservation.  Prior to that, in 2009-2010, he was the inaugural Frederick J. Clarke Scholar at the US Army Corps of Engineers.  

He has received a Guggenheim Fellowship, an Early Career Award from the National Science Foundation, recognized as a Kavli Fellow for the Frontiers of Science from the National Academy of Sciences and selected to deliver the Gilbert White Lecture by the National Academy of Sciences.

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Professor in the Environmental Sciences and Policy Division · 2011 - Present Environmental Sciences and Policy, Nicholas School of the Environment

In the News


Published January 17, 2024
Climate Change Creates Municipal Bond Risks, But Markets Aren’t Responding
Published May 10, 2023
17 Percent of U.S. Households Face Growing Water Affordability Challenge
Published November 15, 2021
New Infrastructure Bill Gives Duke-based Program a National Role

View All News

Recent Publications


Flow-Dependent Color Patches in a Great Plains River

Journal Article Journal of Geophysical Research Biogeosciences · July 1, 2024 Ecosystem structure and its heterogeneity shape ecosystem processes. Ecosystem heterogeneity has been characterized in smaller stream ecosystems dominated by benthic processes. However, in larger river ecosystems structured by water column characteristics ... Full text Cite

Meet the MississippiThe Great River: The Making and Unmaking of the MississippiBoyce Upholt Norton, 2024. 352 pp.

Journal Article Science (New York, N.Y.) · July 2024 A rich introduction captures some but not all the remarkable river has to offer. ... Full text Cite

Observed Warming Trends at U.S. Army Basic Combat Training Installations and Implications for Future Recruit Training.

Journal Article Military medicine · May 2024 IntroductionArmy recruits conducting BCT are among the most susceptible population of military personnel to experience exertional heat illness, a concern expected to become increasingly urgent due to steadily rising temperatures. In this study, we ... Full text Cite
View All Publications

Recent Grants


BHPF - IoW Phased Implementation

Public ServicePrincipal Investigator · Awarded by BHP Foundation · 2021 - 2026

Aspen Nation Water Strategy Initiative

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation · 2024 - 2025

Food in 2050

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by World Wildlife Fund · 2021 - 2025

View All Grants

Education, Training & Certifications


Purdue University · 2002 Ph.D.