Newsha Ajami

Dr. Ajami is a hydrologist and environmental policy expert and the Founding Director of the Program on Governance of Risk, Resilience, and Recovery Program (GR3) at the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. Trained as a civil and environmental engineer and having served in various policy roles, her work bridges science, policy, finance, and governance to advance resilient water systems. She pioneered the use of data science to study the human and policy dimensions of resilient urban water and hydrologic systems.

Previously, she served as Chief Strategic Development Officer for Research in the Earth and Environmental Sciences Area at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory from 2022 to 2026, where she led initiatives at the nexus of water, energy, and climate. Ajami also recently co-led the development of the Aspen National Water Strategy for the Aspen Institute, a national roadmap developed with cross-sector leaders to strengthen U.S. water security, modernize infrastructure, and align water management with economic growth and climate resilience.