James is a Hallsworth Research Fellow at SCI and the Politics department, researching the politics of the electric vehicle transition and the intersection of fiscal, monetary and climate policy. Before beginning this position previous position examined how COVID-19 and the inflation caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine are affecting Net-Zero objectives in Australia, Canada and the UK. A joint project between the Sustainable Consumption Institute, the University of Manchester, the University of Melbourne and the University of Toronto, the research aims to quantify the impact of economic crises on decarbonising the economy and the implications for a just transition.

James joined the institute after completing his PhD at the University of Sheffield and the Sheffield Political Economy Research Institute (SPERI) where his thesis analysed the politics of the electric vehicle transition in Germany and the UK. He has held visiting positions at the University of Bergen (2022), the University of Toronto (2023) and the University of Melbourne (2024). 

James' research has several strands in which he has published. These include:

the political economy of climate politics and the green transition, with a particular emphasis on the electric vehicle (EV) transition. His research tends to focus on Australia, Canada, Europe, the Nordics and the UK.

Green monetary policy and the role of central banks in the transition to Net Zero and their relationship with the state and the financial system.

Climate/nature-related financial risks (C/NRFRs) to financial stability and the financialization of nature, with particular reference to green finance. 

Critiques of capitalism's relationship with nature through ideas of post-growth, degrowth and a steady state economy. 

The climate and environmental impacts of football and sport more broadly.

James is the author of forthcoming books on the political economy of the EV transition in Cambridge University Press and the environmental unsustainability of football with Manchester University Press.