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Katharine L. Jacobs Executive Director Arizona Water Institute Office: 845 N. Park Ave, 5th Floor Phone: 520-626-5627 Email: kjacobs@waterinstitute.org UPDATED
05/2007 |
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Ms. Katharine L. Jacobs is the Executive Director of the Arizona Water Institute, a consortium of the three state universities (Arizona State University, the University of Arizona, and Northern Arizona University) focused on water-related research, education and technology transfer focused on water supply sustainability. She is also the Deputy Director of the NSF Center for Sustainability of Arid Region Hydrology and Riparian Areas at the University of Arizona, and Professor and Specialist at the Department of Soil, Water and Environmental Science and Water Resources Research Center. She has more than twenty years of experience as a water manager for the state of Arizona Department of Water Resources. Her research interests include water policy, connecting science and decision-making, stakeholder engagement, use of climate information for water management applications, and drought planning. Ms. Jacobs earned her M.L.A. in environmental planning from the University of California, Berkeley. She was a co-author of the National Assessment of the Impacts of Climate Change and part of the National Assessment Synthesis Team, and has served on numerous National Research Council panels.
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EDUCATION: University of California, Berkeley. MLA in Environmental
Planning, 1981. CURRENT EMPLOYMENT Executive Director of the Arizona Water Institute, January, 2006 – present. Responsible for program development, inter-university and inter-agency coordination, grant writing and fundraising, outreach, education, and technology transfer for a tri-university collaboration of Arizona’s three universities. Activities are focused on 1) Research, community assistance and analytical support, 2) Education, training and professional capacity building, and 3) Technology and economic development. Professor and Specialist, Department of Soil, Water and Environmental Science and Water Resources Research Center, University of Arizona, October 2003 – present. Professor, Department of Hydrology and Water Resources, University of Arizona, September 2005 – Courtesy Joint Appointment. Supervise graduate students and ensure coordination between Hydrology Department faculty, Water Sustainability Program activities, and SAHRA. Professor, Department of Geography and Regional Development, University of Arizona, October 2006 – Courtesy Appointment. Supervise graduate students and participate in Geography Department activities Deputy Director, Center for Sustainability of semi-Arid Hydrology and Riparian Areas, University of Arizona, September 2004 - present. I assist in managing and strategic planning for this NSF Science and Technology Center involving 14 universities and laboratories and over 250 researchers. The current federal budget is just under $4 million annually. I manage SAHRA's water management-focused stakeholder engagement program. PRIOR EXPERIENCE: Associate Staff Scientist, Institute for the Study of the Planet Earth, University of Arizona, October 2003- June 2005. With support from NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) I worked with the CLIMAS (Climate Assessment for the Southwest) project on water-related projects, including drought planning, regional climate vulnerability assessments and climate change impacts on the water sector. Special Assistant for Policy and Planning, Arizona Department of Water Resources, August, 2002 to October, 2003. In this position, I was the lead staff person for the development of the Arizona Drought Plan and worked on statewide and rural water resource issues. Visiting Scientist, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA-UCAR), September, 2001 to July 2002. I worked closely with scientists and researchers to improve the effectiveness of water and climate related research and applications within NOAA, including developing climate science decision support tools. Special Assistant, Governor Hull's Water Management Commission, Arizona Department of Water Resources. March, 2001 to July, 2001. I was the lead staff person supporting a 49-person Commission and multiple working groups. Director, Tucson Active Management Area, Arizona Department of Water Resources, February, 1988, to March, 2001. My responsibilities included managing the groundwater rights in the greater Tucson area, overseeing and managing all aspects of the Tucson office of the Arizona Department of Water Resources, and developing water management policy and regulations, including mandatory conservation requirements, the Assured Water Supply Rules, recharge and recovery activities, and consensus building relative to major water conflicts. Unit Supervisor, Water Resource Specialist II and III, Tucson Active Management Area, September, 1981 to February, 1988. I served as lead planner for municipal, turf and industrial water conservation programs for the second management plan, as well as supervising Operations and Compliance for the Tucson office. I developed and implemented mandatory conservation requirements for municipal and industrial water use, verified water rights applications, and prepared reports for hearings. Coastal Management Planner, Municipality of Anchorage Planning Department. Anchorage, Alaska. 1980. As part of a three-member team, I prepared the Coastal Management Plan for a 25 mile segment of the Anchorage shoreline, including public access, resource protection, and scenic area elements. Teaching Assistant, University of California, Berkeley. 1979 and 1980. I taught three field courses in site planning and field ecological analysis. Administrative Assistant, Shoals Marine Laboratory, Cornell University. Organized classes in marine biology at a field station off the coast of Maine. HONORS-Academic: HONORS-Professional: RESEARCH AND TEACHING: My research focuses on water management, planning and
policy, climate variability and change, drought planning, connecting
science and decision-making and water-related decision support. I
assisted in the development of Arizona's first drought plan in cooperation
with the Arizona Department of Water Resources and the Climate Assessment
for the Southwest. I am the project manager on a major project with
the US Bureau of Reclamation focusing on incorporation of climate
information into modeling activities associated with managing the
Colorado River, and have been involved in four National Academy panels
over the past two years. I have co-taught a graduate seminar on Arizona
Water Policy with Dr. Sharon Megdal for the last two years, and regularly
give lectures in classes in several departments. Member, National Research Council Panel, Analysis of Global Change Assessments |
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PUBLICATIONS Colby, B., and K.L. Jacobs, eds, 2006, Arizona Water Policy: Management Innovations in an Urbanizing, Arid Region, Resources for the Future Press, Washington, DC. |
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