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The Kathryn Fuller Science for Nature Fund

2009 Science for Nature Symposium Speakers

Symposium Overview | Videos & Presentations

Confirmed Speakers include:

Fred Pearce, freelance journalist and author
Daniel Schindler University of Washington
LeRoy Poff, Colorado State University
Eugenio Barrios, WWF Mexico
Nick van de Giesen, Delft University of Technology
Rafik Hirji, World Bank
John Furlow, USAID
Kathleen Miller, NCAR
Jim Jarvie, Mercy Corps
Brian Richter, TNC
John Matthews, WWF
Allison Aldous, TNC
Alfred M. Duda, World Bank Group

Fuller Symposium Speakers

Alfred M. Duda
Senior Advisor for International Waters
World Bank Group
Dr. Alfred M. Duda joined the World Bank Group in 1992, where he was part of the internal Bank team that crafted the 1993 Water Resources Management Policy that still guides the World Bank’s work in the field of water resources. For the last 14 years, he has been posted at the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Secretariat within the World Bank in a number of management positions and currently serves as Senior Advisor for International Waters, responsible for GEF’s International Waters Focal Area with its $6 billion portfolio of 173 countries working on their transboundary waters. Following completion of his Ph.D. from Duke University, he held a series of management positions at the water quality regulatory agency of the State of North Carolina in the 1970s and then at the corporate environment staff of the Tennessee Valley Authority. In 1987, he was named by the U. S. Department of State as Director and Chief of Diplomatic Mission of the Great Lakes Office of the International Joint Commission, supporting Canadian and US operations under the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty.
Allison Aldous
Freshwater Scientist
The Nature Conservancy
A freshwater scientist with The Nature Conservancy, Dr. Allison Aldous works on projects covering a range of topics including conservation of groundwater-dependent biodiversity, wetland restoration, water quality, environmental flows restoration, and climate change impacts to freshwater biodiversity. Dr. Aldous serves on the board of the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute, as well as on several technical committees that support the Oregon Governor’s Global Warming Commission. She holds a Ph.D. in wetland ecology from Cornell University and an M.Sc. in plant sciences and a B.Sc. in biochemistry from McGill University. She has authored numerous journal articles and technical papers on the topics of groundwater-dependent biodiversity, wetland restoration, and adapting biodiversity conservation to the impacts of climate change.
Eugenio Barrios
Director, IBRM and Freshwater Program
WWF-Mexico
Eugenio Barrios brought his expertise in water management issues to WWF Mexico in 2004. His prior experience included work at the National Water Commission; at the Institute of Engineering at the University of Mexico (UNAM); and at the World Bank, where he did international consulting with the World Meteorological Organization, the Mekong River Commission in Asia, and the government of Panama. His solid experience in watershed management and water resource protection is built on projects such as the redesign of the national water quality monitoring network in Mexico, the national plan for watershed sanitation and water reuse in Mexico, and the drinking water surveillance system in Panama. Mr. Barrios holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from UNAM and a master’s in environmental engineering in the field of water quality processes and environmental system analysis from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
John Furlow
Climate Change Specialist
Global Climate Change Team, USAID
John Furlow serves as USAID’s expert on climate change science, impacts and adaptation in developing countries, including application of climate change science that supports development. He is responsible for interagency policy development in this technical area and participates in international deliberations representing USAID. Mr. Furlow led the development of the Climate Mapper, a tool providing map-based access to historical weather data and projected climate data. Prior to joining USAID, he worked with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Global Change Research Program and was cochair of the CCSP Inter- Agency Working Group on the Global Water Cycle. He also managed the Great Lakes Regional Assessment, which looked at the possible impacts of climate change on economic sectors including agriculture, fishing, shipping and tourism. As a Peace Corps volunteer, Mr. Furlow worked in Hungary and monitored elections in Bosnia. He earned a master’s degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.
Rafik Hirji
Senior Water Resources Management Specialist
Environment Department and the Africa Water Resources Management Initiative, World Bank
Dr. Rafik Hirji is currently leading the preparation of the World Bank’s global sector analysis on groundwater governance. His extensive experience includes leading the Sustainable Development Network’s agenda on water and environment by promoting operational tools for sustainable utilization and management of rivers, lakes and aquifers. He was team leader for the global lake basin management initiative, sector analysis on strategic environmental assessments in water resources management, and sector analysis for the integration of environmental flows into water resources operations and water policy dialogue. He also led the preparation of national water resources strategies for Kenya, Tanzania, and Trinidad and Tobago, and supported the preparation of the Bank’s flagship work on climate change and water. Dr. Hirji holds a B.Sc. in civil engineering from the University of Dar es Salaam. At Stanford University, he earned an M.Sc. in environmental engineering and science and a Ph.D. in water resources planning.
Jim Jarvie
Director, Climate Change, Environment and Natural Resources Unit
Mercy Corps
Dr. Jim Jarvie joined Mercy Corps immediately after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, working in Sri Lanka, where he was based at the time. After two years dedicated to tsunami response, he took on his current role as director for climate change. Dr. Jarvie is a biologist with more than 14 years of experience in natural resource management and conservation in Southeast Asia. His work with international donors, universities and conservationrelated NGOs has covered a range of topics including natural resource governance, forest-based conflict, ethical timber trading and protected area design. His current activities focus on the interface between development, climate and environment in the Congo Basin, Indonesia and East Timor.
John Matthews
Freshwater Climate Change Specialist
WWF-US
Dr. John Matthews received a degree in cultural anthropology at the University of Chicago in 1990. For the next 12 years, he worked in the publishing industry, primarily as an editor and writer. Having seen places he knew well as a child become rapidly degraded, John decided to leave publishing and spend two years taking undergraduate biology courses. In 2002, he enrolled in the Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior doctoral program at the University of Texas. His dissertation focused on how aquatic insects and migratory species will be impacted by climate change. During graduate school, Dr. Matthews collaborated with a variety of researchers, agencies, NGOs and landowners on conservation and climate change issues. His work with WWF centers on developing and implementing strategies that enable global freshwater ecosystems to adapt and build resilience to the current period of climate shifts.
Peter McCornick
Director for Water Policy
Nicholas Institute, Duke University
Dr. Peter McCornick has spent nearly 30 years addressing water challenges in the agriculture, environment and health sectors. This work has included policy and strategy development, planning and management, and teaching and research. He has worked throughout North America, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. At the Nicholas Institute, he leads the water program to provide strategic knowledge and advice in meeting complex water challenges. Prior experiences include serving as the Asia director for the International Water Management Institute and being seconded to USAID as senior water resources and irrigation advisor. Dr. McCornick has a Ph.D. and an M.S. in water resources and irrigation engineering from Colorado State University. He earned his undergraduate degree in agricultural engineering at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne in the UK. He is a registered civil engineer in Colorado and a member of the American Academy of Water Resources Engineers. He is widely published.
Kathleen Miller
Resource Economist, Institute for the Study of Society and Environment (ISSE)
National Center for Atmospheric Research
Dr. Kathleen Miller is an economist who collaborates on multidisciplinary research on climate impacts, vulnerability and adaptation. Her research focuses on human exploitation of climate-sensitive natural resources and on the socioeconomic and institutional factors affecting resource management decisions in the context of uncertainty and competing interests. She is coauthor of a book on the implications of climate change for urban water utilities, Climate Change and Water Resources: A Primer for Municipal Water Providers. She is a lead author of chapter 3, “Water Resources and Their Management,” in the IPCC Working Group II, Fourth Assessment Report Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability and of the IPCC Technical Paper on Climate Change and Water. Dr. Miller received a bachelor’s degree in anthropology, and a master’s and doctorate in economics, from the University of Washington.
Fred Pearce
Environment Consultant
New Scientist
Fred Pearce is a freelance author and journalist based in London. He has reported on environment, science and development issues from 64 countries over the past 20 years. Trained as a geographer, he has been environment consultant for New Scientist magazine since 1992, with special interest in water issues and climate change. Mr. Pearce’s books have been translated into at least 12 languages. They include Confessions of an Eco Sinner, When the Rivers Run Dry, Earth: Then and Now, With Speed and Violence (on climate change), Keepers of the Spring and Deep Jungle. His next book explores population and the environment in the 21st century.
LeRoy Poff
Professor, Department of Biology
Director, University of Colorado Graduate Degree Program in Ecology
Colorado State University-Fort Collins
Ecologist LeRoy Poff seeks to understand how human modification of natural environmental variation influences the structure and function of aquatic and riparian ecosystems. He is particularly interested in the ecological consequences of hydrologic alteration, having played an active role in developing the field of hydro-ecology over the last 20 years. Dr. Poff is a recognized leader in the global effort to develop a strong scientific foundation to inform sustainable hydrologic management of river ecosystems in an uncertain future. His publications on climate change span his career; his present research focuses on developing ecological risk models for river responses to climate change. He received his doctorate from Colorado State University in 1989, was a research scientist at the University of Maryland from 1990 to 1997, and was senior scientist at Trout Unlimited from 1996 to 1997. He recently became president of the North American Benthological Society and is an Aldo Leopold Fellow of the Ecological Society of America.
Brian Richter
Co-Leader, Global Freshwater Team
The Nature Conservancy
Brian Richter has been involved in river science and conservation for more than 20 years. As co-leader of TNC’s Global Freshwater Team, he works on promoting sustainable water management to governments, corporations and local communities. Mr. Richter has consulted on more than 120 river projects worldwide, with a focus on the challenge of meeting human needs for water and energy while sustaining healthy rivers and lakes. He has developed numerous scientific tools to support river protection and restoration efforts, including the Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration software that is being used by water managers and ecologists around the world. He has published many scientific papers on the importance of ecologically sustainable water management in international science journals, and has coauthored a book with Sandra Postel titled Rivers for Life: Managing Water for People and Nature.
Daniel Schindler
Professor, Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, Department of Biology
University of Washington
Dr. Daniel Schindler is the H. Mason Keeler Professor of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences at the University of Washington in Seattle, where he has been on the faculty since 1997. His research explores the causes and consequences of aquatic ecosystem dynamics. Of particular interest are climate impacts, fisheries as large-scale drivers of ecosystem organization, and the interdependencies of terrestrial, marine, and freshwater ecosystems. He received the Distinguished Research Award from the College of Ocean and Fishery Sciences at the University of Washington. He serves on the editorial boards of Ecology, Ecological Monographs, and Ecosystems. Dr. Schindler also has been chair of the Aquatics Section of the Ecological Society of America, and served on the Education and Human Resources Committee of the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography. He received doctorate and master’s degrees from the Center for Limnology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a bachelor of science from the University of British Columbia.
Nick van de Giesen
Chair, Van Kuffeler Water Resources Management, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences Professor, Integrated Water Resources Management and Water Management
Delft University of Technology
Dr. Nick van de Giesen received a master of science degree in land and water management from Wageningen Agricultural University in 1987 and a doctorate in agricultural and biological engineering from Cornell University in 1994. After a postdoctoral position with the West Africa Rice Development Association in Côte d’Ivoire, he spent six years as a senior researcher with the Center for Development Research (ZEF), University of Bonn, where he was the scientific coordinator of the Global Change in the Hydrological Cycle Volta Project. He has been in his current positions at Delft University of Technology since 2004. Dr. van de Giesen serves as secretary of the International Commission on Water Resources Systems of the International Association of Hydrological Sciences, chairman of the Committee on Water Policy and Management of the European Geosciences Union, chairman of the Netherlands Commission on Irrigation and Drainage, and senior fellow with the ZEF, University of Bonn.