Skip to Content
Report an accessibility problem
Katharine Jacobs

Katharine Jacobs

Assistant Director, Climate Adaptation and Assessment

jacobsk@email.arizona.edu

520-626-5627

Office of Science and Technology Policy
845 N. Park Ave., 5th Floor
Tucson, AZ 85721
USA

Titles

  • Assistant Director, Climate Adaptation and Assessment

Biography

Katharine Jacobs is the Executive Director of the Arizona Water Institute, a consortium of the three state universities (Arizona State University, the University of Arizona, and Northern Arizona University) focused on water-related research, education and technology transfer focused on water supply sustainability. She is also the Deputy Director of the NSF Center for Sustainability of Arid Region Hydrology and Riparian Areas at the University of Arizona, and Professor and Specialist at the Department of Soil, Water and Environmental Science and Water Resources Research Center. She has more than twenty years of experience as a water manager for the state of Arizona Department of Water Resources. Her research interests include water policy, connecting science and decision-making, stakeholder engagement, use of climate information for water management applications, and drought planning. Ms. Jacobs earned her M.L.A. in environmental planning from the University of California, Berkeley. She was a co-author of the National Assessment of the Impacts of Climate Change and part of the National Assessment Synthesis Team, and has served on numerous National Research Council panels.

Journal Articles

2016

Buizer, J. L., K. Dow, M. E. Black, K. L. Jacobs, A. Waple, R. H. Moss, S. Moser, A. Luers, D. I. Gustafson, T. C. Richmond, S. L. Hays and C. B. Field. 2016. Building a sustained climate assessment process. Climatic Change 135(1):23-37. DOI: 10.1007/s10584-015-1501-4. (link )

Buizer, J., K. Jacobs and D. Cash. 2016. Making short-term climate forecasts useful: Linking science and action. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 113(17):4597-4602. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0900518107. (link )

Jacobs, K., L. Lebel, J. Buizer, L. Addams, P. Matson, E. McCullough, P. Garden, G. Saliba and T. Finan. 2016. Linking knowledge with action in the pursuit of sustainable water-resources management. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 113(17):4591-4596. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0813125107. (link )

Moser, S. C., J. M. Melillo, K. L. Jacobs, R. H. Moss and J. L. Buizer. 2016. Aspirations and common tensions: Larger lessons from the third US national climate assessment. Climatic Change 135(1):187-201. DOI: 10.1007/s10584-015-1530-z. (link )

2015

Jacobs, K. L. and J. L. Buizer. 2015. Building community, credibility and knowledge: The third US National Climate Assessment. Climatic Change 1-14. DOI: 10.1007/s10584-015-1445-8. (link )

2014

Weaver, C. P., S. Mooney, D. Allen, N. Beller-Simms, T. Fish, A. E. Grambsch, W. Hohenstein, K. L. Jacobs, M. A. Kenney, M. A. Lane, L. Langner, E. Larson, D. L. McGinnis, R. H. Moss, L. G. Nichols, C. Nierenberg, E. A. Seylier, P. C. Stern and R. Winthrop. 2014. From global change science to action with social sciences. Nature Climate Change 4:656-659. DOI: 10.1038/nclimate2319. (link )

2009

Jacobs, K., G. Garfin and J. Buizer. 2009. The science-policy interface: Experience of a workshop for climate change researchers and water managers. Science and Public Policy 36(10):791-798. DOI: 10.3152/030234209X481969. (link )

2008

Garfin, G., K. Jacobs and J. Buizer. 2008. Beyond brainstorming: Exploring climate change adaptation strategies. EOS 89(25):227. DOI: 10.1029/2008EO250007. (link )

Garrick, D., K. L. Jacobs and G. M. Garfin. 2008. Models, assumptions, and stakeholders: planning for water supply variability in the Colorado River Basin. Journal of the American Water Resources Association 44(2):381-398.

Saliba, G. and K. L. Jacobs. 2008. Saving the San Pedro River: Science, collaboration, and water sustainability in Arizona. Environment 50(6):30-43.

2006

Garrick, D. and K. L. Jacobs. 2006. Water management on the Colorado River: From surplus to shortage in five years. Southwest Hydrology 5(3):8-9.

2005

Jacobs, K. L., G. M. Garfin and M. Lenart. 2005. More than just talk: Connecting science and decisionmaking. Environment 47(9):6-22.

Books

2006

Colby, B. G. and K. L. Jacobs. 2006. Arizona Water Policy: Management Innovations in an Urbanizing, Arid Region. Resources for the Future Press. Washington, DC.

Book Chapters

2016

Jacobs, K. L. and J. L. Buizer. 2016. Foreword. Pp. xiii-xviii In: Parris, A. S., G. M. Garfin, K. Dow, R. M. Meyer and S. L. Close eds., Climate in Context: Science and Society Partnering for Adaptation. Wiley. ISBN: 978-1-118-47479-2.

2006

Holway, J. M. and K. L. Jacobs. 2006. Managing for sustainability in Arizona, USA: Linking climate, water management and growth. In: Mays, L. W. ed., Water Resources Sustainability. McGraw-Hill.

2005

Jacobs, K. L., B. G. Colby, D. Meko and B. Nijjsen. 2005. Enhanced water supply reliability through improved predictive capacity and response. Conference Proceedings of the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting.

Posters

2008

Subramanya, S., C. Gries, K. Jacobs, W. Otte, R. Vasquez, J. Abraham, R. Aguilar, J. McGill and H. Liu. 2008. Arizona Hydrologic Information System: Enhanced data accessibility using web services. Poster presented at 10 January 2008 CAP LTER 10th Annual Poster Symposium, Global Institute of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ. (link )

Presentations

2008

Gries, C., K. L. Jacobs, W. D. Otte, R. Vasquez, J. Abraham, R. Aguilar, J. McGill, S. Bhargav and H. V. Nguyen. 2008. The Arizona hydrologic information system. Paper presented March 17, 2008 at the American Water Resources Association Spring Specialty Conference, San Mateo, CA.

Jacobs, K. L., J. L. Buizer and D. Cash. 2008. Making short-term climate forecasts useful: Linking science and action. April 2008 Invited Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Chapter, to be presented at a National Academy of Sciences Sackler Colloquium, Washington, DC.

Jacobs, K. L., L. Lebel, J. L. Buizer, L. Addams, P. Matson, E. McCullough, P. Garden, G. Saliba and T. Finan. 2008. Linking knowledge with action in the pursuit of sustainable water resources management. April 2008 Invited Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Chapter, National Academy of Sciences Sackler Colloquium, Washington, DC.

Conference Papers

2009

Garfin, G., K. Jacobs and J. Buizer. 2009. Climate change adaptation lessons from the land of dry heat. Pp. 53-57 In: Webb, R. M. and D. Semmens eds., Proceedings of the Third Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds. Third Interagency Conference on Research in the Watersheds. (link )

Reports

2009

Buizer, J. L., N. Beller-Simms, K. L. Jacobs, B. Bentzin, E. Shea, R. Anderson and M. Roy. 2009. Planning Integrated Research for Decision Support for Climate Adaptation and Water Management: A Focus on Desert and Coastal Cities,. Arizona State University. (link )

2008

Beller-Simms, N., H. Ingram, D. L. Feldman, N. Mantua, K. L. Jacobs and A. M. Waple. 2008. Decision-support experiments and evaluations using seasonal-to-interannual forecasts and observational data: A focus on water resources. Final Report, Synthesis and Assessment Product 5.3. NOAA’s Climatic Change Data Center.

2007

Gammage, G., N. Welch, R. Melnick, J. D. Godchaux, R. Heffernon, D. Berman, B. Hart, R. Toon, K. L. Jacobs, B. Lewkowitz, D. D. Bennett and Y. Artibise. 2007. The future at Pinal: Making choices / making places. Morrison Institute for Public Policy. (link )