Rebecca Nelson
Lead Researcher, Comparative Groundwater Law and Policy Program at Stanford
Rebecca is Lead Researcher, Comparative Groundwater Law and Policy Program at the Woods Institute for the Environment and the Bill Lane Center for the American West, Stanford University, a collaborative program with the US Studies Centre
In 2010, Rebecca commenced her present project, conducting research and leading a series of international symposia focusing on legal and policy aspects of integrated groundwater management. The project concentrates on mechanisms for managing surface water and groundwater as one resource, taking into account the ecological context. It takes an interdisciplinary perspective, informed by Rebecca's law and environmental engineering backgrounds.
Most recently Rebecca worked from 2006-2009 in the environmental and water law practices of Blake Dawson, a national law firm in Australia, including a long-term secondment as the in-house lawyer for the Murray-Darling Basin Commission (later Authority). She has published 10 articles and presented at a dozen conferences both in Australia and also internationally on topics related to water management, rangeland management, invasive species and endangered species. Her work often adopts a comparative perspective, examining innovation in environmental and water regulation and policy in arid and semi-arid areas, including the United States, Australia and China. Rebecca now combines her work on the legal aspects of integrated groundwater management with independent consulting on water and environmental policy. She has also served as a guest law lecturer at the University of Melbourne.
Rebecca holds a Master of the Science of Law from Stanford University, undertaken as a General Sir John Monash Scholar. As a Melbourne National Scholar, she also holds Bachelors degrees in law and environmental engineering from the University of Melbourne, both with first class honours. She is currently undertaking the degree of Doctor of the Science of Law at Stanford University.
