Director of the Wheeler Water Institute
Dr. Michael (Mike) Kiparsky is the founding Director of the Wheeler Water Institute within the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment at the UC Berkeley School of Law. Under his leadership, the Institute has grown into a widely recognized voice on a range of California water issues. Mike has worked on technical and policy aspects of water resources management for 15 years, and Mike’s primary interest lies at their intersection. Mike has published academic articles and technical reports on a range of topics including governance and policy of complex water systems, climate change impacts and adaptation, water innovation, and science for decision-making. Mike’s work has appeared in media outlets including The Sacramento Bee, the San Francisco Chronicle, and the Los Angeles Times, and through his engagement activities is regularly used by state and local decision-makers. Mike was previously on the faculty at the University of Idaho and has experience in consulting, non-profit, and agency settings. Mike earned an A.B. in Biology from Brown University and a Ph.D. from U.C. Berkeley’s Energy and Resources Group, where he was an NSF Graduate Research Fellow, a Udall Scholar, a CALFED Science Scholar, and the first ACWA Steve Hall Water Law & Policy Scholar. Mike was recently named one of ‘Nine Experts to Watch on California Water Policy” by Water Deeply.