Spring Water Policy Forum: Navigating Turbulent Waters

The Water Center at Penn is pleased to present our second annual Spring Water Policy Forum, which will be held in person on the University of Pennsylvania's campus.

The theme for this year will be Navigating Turbulent Waters: Managing the Compounding Water Management Challenges Facing Local Leaders in the Northeast Mega Region and the Forum will consist of a morning of keynote and setting the stage presentations followed by remarks from a panel or commenters.

Following the presentations and commenter discussions, the Forum will move into a networking lunch where students will have the opportunity engage with leaders from across the water sector.

This page will be continually updated as speakers and commenters are confirmed. Below are confirmed speakers to date.

Paul Bodnar is the Director of Sustainable Finance, Industry, and Diplomacy at the Bezos Earth Fund. He most recently served as Global Head of Sustainable Investing at BlackRock, where he helped build the firm's $500 billion sustainable funds business, and also served as Head of Sustainability Policy and Engagement.

Prior to joining BlackRock, Paul held a variety of leadership positions in finance, government, and civil society. He was Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Council member at RMI (formerly Rocky Mountain Institute), where he founded the Center for Climate-Aligned Finance. Paul served in the Obama White House as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Energy and Climate Change at the National Security Council. Prior to that, Paul served at the State Department as U.S. lead negotiator for climate finance.

Earlier in his career, Paul was Director for Carbon Finance at Climate Change Capital's $1.2 billion carbon fund, where he structured the fund's largest investments. He was also co-founder and partner at Vertis Environmental Finance, a leading European environmental commodity brokerage. Paul holds a BA from Stanford and an MA from Harvard.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Golkin Hall, Fitts Auditorium, 3501 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, United States