Sara Hughes
National Center for Atmospheric Research
(303) 497-2827 (w)
Research Applications Laboratory
(810) 835-1748 (m)
3090 Center Green Drive
shughes@ucar.edu
Boulder, CO 80307
http://www.ral.ucar.edu/staff/shughes-staff.php
RESEARCH AND TEACHING INTERESTS
Urban policy and governance; sustainability; democratic institutions and equity; research
methods; urban water management and climate change planning
EDUCATION
2011
University of California, Santa Barbara
Ph.D. in Environmental Science and Management
Dissertation Title: Institutions and Policy Change in Public Service Reform: The Case
of Urban Water Management
Supervisor: Oran Young
Specializations: Environmental Institutions, Water Management, Science and Policy
2006
Michigan State University
M.Sc. in Fisheries and Wildlife
Thesis Title: The Changing Value of Water
Supervisors: William Taylor and Thomas Dietz
Specialization: Gender, Justice, and Environmental Change
2004
Michigan State University
B.Sc. in Fisheries and Wildlife, Honors College
Graduated with Honors
RESEARCH POSITIONS
2011- Postdoctoral Fellow, National Center for Atmospheric Research
Present Climate Science and Applications Program, Boulder, CO
2011
Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of California, Los Angeles
Center for Sustainable Urban Systems, Los Angeles, CA (May-October)
PUBLICATIONS
Refereed Articles
Hughes, Sara. “Authority Structures and Service Reform in Multilevel Urban Governance: The
case of wastewater recycling in California and Australia,” Urban Affairs Review. (Accepted)
Hughes, Sara and Stephanie Pincetl. “Evaluating Collaborative Institutions in Context: The case
of regional water management in southern California,” Environment and Planning C:
Government and Policy. (Accepted)
Hughes, Sara. “Voluntary Environmental Programs in the Public Sector: Evaluation of an Urban
Water Conservation Program in California,” Policy Studies Journal (Accepted)
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Pincetl, Stephanie, Guido Franco, Terri Hogue, Sara Hughes, Eric Pardyjak. 2012. “Urban
Areas,” in Assessment of Climate Change in the Southwest United States: A Technical Report
Prepared for the U.S. National Climate Assessment. Tucson, AZ: Southwest Climate Alliance.
Hughes, Sara, Annie Yau, Lisa Max, Nada Petrovic, Frank Davenport, Michael Marshall,
Timothy R. McClanahan, Joshua C. Cinner, Edward H. Allison. 2012. “Assessing National
Level Vulnerability to Coral Reef Fisheries Decline from a Food Security Perspective,”
Environmental Science and Policy. 23, 95-108.
Braden, John, Jeffrey Dozier, Patricia Gober, Sara Hughes, David R. Maidment, Sandra L.
Schneider, P. Wesley Schultz, James S. Shortle, Stephen K. Swallow, and Carol M. Werner.
2009. “Social Science in a Water Observing System,” Water Resources Research Vol. 45,
W11301.
Hughes, Sara, Lena Partszch, and Joanne Gaskell. 2007. “Virtual Water: A critical link for
integrating global water, energy, and development goals,” Sustainable Development Law and
Policy, 7, 58-62.
Book Chapters
Romero Lankao, Patricia, Hua Qin, Sara Hughes, Melissa Haeffner and Mercy Borbo-Cordova.
“Urban vulnerability and adaptation to the health impacts of air pollution and climate extremes
in Latin American cities,” in Research in Urban Sociology, ed. William G. Holt, Bingley, UK:
Emerald Press. (Accepted)
Hughes, Sara and Joan Rose. 2011. “Governing Global Aquaculture for Human Security,” with
Joan Rose, in Sustainable Fisheries: Multi-Level Approaches to a Global Problem, eds.
Michael Schechter, Abigail Lynch, and William Taylor: Bethesda, MD: American Fisheries
Society Press.
Hughes, Sara and Jennifer McKay. 2010. “The Contribution of Actors to Achieving
Sustainability in Australia through Water Policy Transitions,” in Policy Entrepreneurs: A
research companion to water transitions around the world, eds. Dave Huitema and Sander
Meijerink, Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Press.
Partszch, Lena and Sara Hughes. 2010. “Food versus Fuel: Governance Potential for Water
Rivalry,” in Food Ethics, eds. Franz-Theo Gottwald, Hans Werner Ingensiep and Marc
Meinhardt, New York, NY: Springer Publishers.
Hughes, Sara and Lena Partszch. 2009. “Greening the Streams: US and EU Water Foreign
Policy,” in Environmental Change and Foreign Policy, ed. Paul G. Harris, London, UK:
Routledge Press.
Other Publications
Hughes, Sara. 2009. “Urban Governance and Modern Challenges: Evaluating Urban Water
Services,” in Urbanization and Global Environmental Change Viewpoints.
Harris, Melissa, Sara Hughes, Arturo Keller, Patrick Roenhardz, Sam Bennett, and Robert
Wilkinson. 2009. “The Energy and Water Nexus: How to maximize conservation bang for the
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efficiency buck,” in Water Efficiency Magazine.
Hughes, Sara. 2008. “Assessing the Character and Content of Public Communications for Water
Management Strategies,” Report to the South Australia Department of Water, Land, and
Biodiversity Conservation.
MANUSCRIPTS IN PROGRESS
Romero Lankao, Patricia, Sara Hughes, Angelica Rosas Huerta, Roxana Burquez, and Melissa
Haeffner. “Institutional Capacity for Climate Change Responses: An examination of
construction and pathways in Mexico City and Santiago,” (Accepted with revisions at
Environment and Planning C: Government and Policy).
Hughes, Sara. “A Research Agenda for Understanding the Mechanisms of Injustice in Urban
Climate Change Planning,” (Under Review at Ecology and Society as part of a special issue on
Governing Adaptation)
Patricia Romero Lankao, Sara Hughes, Angelica Rosas Huerta, Roxana Burquez, Hua Qin, and
Andrea Lampis. “Toward an integrated assessment of urban vulnerability and risk: insights
from Latin American cities,” (Under Review at Environment and Urbanization)
Hughes, Sara, Stephanie Pincetl and Christopher Boone. “Understanding Major Urban
Transitions: Drivers and Dynamics in the City of Los Angeles,” (Under Review at Cities)
Hughes, Sara and Patricia Romero Lankao. “Institutional Drivers, Science Politics, and Urban
Climate Change Planning in Mega-Cities,” (In preparation; presented at APSA 2012)
Hughes, Sara. “A Spatial Approach to Vulnerability and Institutional Fit in Urban Climate
Change Planning in Delhi and Mexico City,” (In preparation)
Hughes, Sara and Susan Opp. “The Politics of Equity: Understanding why cities include equity
dimensions in urban sustainability programs,” (In preparation)
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
University of Colorado, Boulder
Cities and the Environment: Capstone Course (Spring 2013)
Environmental Studies Department, Instructor and Course Developer
University of California, Santa Barbara
Sustainable Water Management: ENV S 489.4. (Winter 2011)
UCSB Extension, Instructor and Course Developer
72% Excellent rating
Environmental Politics and Policymaking: ESM 241 (Winter 2009, 2010, 2011)
Graduate Course, Teaching Assistant
62% Superior rating, compared to 36% for other teaching assistants
University of South Australia
Environmental Law and Policy: LAWS 2003 (Fall 2007)
Undergraduate Course, Instructor
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Michigan State University
Sustainable Development in Madagascar (Summer 2006)
Undergraduate Study Abroad Course, Teaching Assistant
AWARDS/FUNDED RESEARCH
ASP Postdoctoral Fellowship (2011-2013). Research Applications Laboratory, Climate Science
and Applications Program, Resilient and Sustainable Cities group
Pre-Doctoral Fellowship Award. $120,000. 2008-2010. CALFED Science Program
Fulbright Postgraduate Fellowship. 2007. Fulbright Commission, Australia
Travel Grant. 2011. American Political Science Association
Affiliate’s Graduate Fellowship. 2010. University of California, Santa Barbara
Dean’s Fellowship. 2009-2010. University of California, Santa Barbara
Science to Solutions Doctoral Student Fellowship. 2008-2010. Henry Luce Foundation
Stuart Weithman Presentation Award. 2006. Socioeconomics Division of the American
Fisheries Society
INVITED PRESENTATIONS
The Energy and Resources Institute, “Urban Climate Change Planning: Exploring the Role of
Institutions,” Delhi, India, May 21, 2012.
University of Colorado, Denver, “Building Theories to Understand the Underlying Mechanisms
of Injustice in Urban Climate Governance,” Workshop on Policy Process Research, February
15, 2012.
University of Southern California, “Regulating Water: Strategies, Challenges, and Future
Directions,” Department of Business and Government, Los Angeles, CA, March 24, 2011.
University of California, Santa Barbara, “Determinants of the Adoption and Implementation of
Urban Water Conservation Programs,” Department of Political Science, October 28, 2010.
Helmholz Centre for the Environment, “Institutions and Water Management,” Leipzig,
Germany, August 25, 2007.
CONFERENCE PAPERS AND PRESENTATIONS
“Institutional Drivers, Science Politics, and Urban Climate Change Planning in Mega-Cities.”
2012. Paper Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association,
August 30-September 2, New Orleans, LA. (presented virtually)
“Locating Authority in Urban Climate Adaptation: Processes and Consequences.” 2012. Paper
Presented at the “Governing Adaptation” Symposium, March 21-22, Amsterdam, the
Netherlands.
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“The Role of “Local” Control in Promoting Justice in Urban Climate Change Planning.” 2012.
Paper Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers, February
25-29, New York, NY.
“Evaluating Collaborative Institutions in Context: Regional Water Management in Southern
California.” 2011. Paper Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science
Association, September 1-4, Seattle, WA.
“Multilevel Governance and Environmental Change: The Scale Politics of Recycled Water
Development for Cities in California and Australia," 2011. Paper Presented at the
Conference on Earth System Governance, May 17-20, Fort Collins, CO.
“Regulation, Reliability and Resources: Understanding Policy Effects on Urban Water
Agencies,” 2010. Paper presented at the Fall Meeting of the Association for Public Policy
Analysis and Management, November 4-6, Boston, Massachusetts.
“Cities, Services, and Changing Contexts: Examining the Role of Institutions in Responding to
Environmental Risk,” 2010. Paper Presented at the Conference on Urbanization and
Global Environmental Change, October 15-17, Tempe, Arizona.
“Urban Water Agencies and Organizational Strategy: Implications for Adaptation,” 2010.
Paper Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association, April
21-25, Chicago, Illinois.
“Institutions and Sustainable Cities,” 2009. Paper Presented at the International Human
Dimensions Program Open Meeting, April 25-29, Bonn, Germany.
“Management That Fits: The Implications of Urban Water Management for the Bay-Delta",
2009. Paper Presented at the Annual CALFED Science Meeting, September 29-October 1,
Sacramento, California.
“Drought, Urban Water and Environmental Flows: Planning for Resilience,” 2008. Poster
Presented at the Resilience Conference, April 14-17, Stockholm, Sweden.
“Virtual Water Accounting in Biofuels Trade,” 2007. Poster Presented at World Water Week,
June 10-15, Stockholm, Sweden.
“Why Collaboration? Dynamic water governance and the need for connections,” 2007. Session
Organizer and Speaker. American Association for the Advancement of Science, June 15-18,
San Francisco, California.
“Filing the Holes in Water Management: Groundwater policy, values, and trout,” 2006. Paper
Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Fisheries Society, September 3-5, Lake
Placid, New York.
“Water Law and Politics,” 2006. Panelist for the Annual Michigan Conference of Political
Scientists, August 20-23, Dearborn, Michigan
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ADVISING
Instructor and Thesis Advisor, Arid Lands Institute, Woodbury University, Burbank, CA
(2011)
Summer high school mentoring program, UC Santa Barbara (2009)
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES AND SERVICE
Workshop Participation
Dissertations Initiative for the Advancement of Climate Change Research, National Science
Foundation and NASA, Colorado Springs, CO, October 13-20, 2012
Mediating Climate Change in the City: Workshop for Early Career Researchers and International
Symposium, Durham, UK, March 19-23, 2012
Managing Transitions to Sustainable Communities and Regions, Cornell University, Ithaca, New
York, June 18-23, 2010
Marie Curie Winter School in Adaptive Governance, Vrije University, Amsterdam, November
18-22, 2009
National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis Working Group, “Reefs, Food, People”,
Santa Barbara, CA, April 5-7, 2009
International Human Dimensions Workshop: “Water, Trade and the Environment”, Chiang Mai,
Thailand, October 15-30, 2006
Reviewer
Policy Studies Journal, Society & Natural Resources, Journal of Administration and Policy
Research, Coastal Management Journal, Ecology & Society, International Journal of Urban and
Regional Research
Member
American Political Science Association, American Association for the Advancement of Science,
Association of American Geographers, Association for Public Policy Analysis and
Management
Research Fellow
Earth System Governance Partnership of the International Human Dimensions Program
Outreach
Contributor to www.watergovernance.eu
Workshop co-organizer for decision makers in Latin American cities: “Vulnerability and
adaptation of cities to climate change”, Mexico City, February 7, 2012
Service
Member of the Social Science assembly, National Center for Atmospheric Research, to assist
with strategic planning and integrating social science
NCAR representative for NCAR Days at NSF, November 13, 2012
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OTHER SKILLS
Software
R, SPSS, UCINet, ArcGIS, Angel, Blackboard
Language
Proficient in Spanish
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