Senior Director, Global Advocacy, International Program

As the water crisis in Flint, Michigan continues to permeate the political sphere, we FEATURE Susan Egan Keane. Susan is a public health specialist with over 25 years of experience working on domestic and international environmental health issues. In the US, her work experience has covered a range of topics, including toxics emissions reporting, air pollution regulation, pesticides management, and water quality standards and criteria. Internationally, she has worked at local, regional, and national levels on toxics, drinking water and air pollution issues. Media includes: New York Times, Washington Post, Time Magazine, National Geographic, The Guardian.

Climate Scientist

To explain the recent reports of 2015 being the hottest year on record, we FEATURE Dr. Jessica Blunden. Dr Jessica Blunden is a climate scientist with ERT Inc, working in the Center for Weather and Climate at NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information in Asheville, North Carolina. She holds Masters and Doctorate degrees in Atmospheric Science from North Carolina State University and has co-authored more than a dozen peer reviewed publications. Jessica serves as a lead editor for the State of the Climate report, an annual peer reviewed report published by the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society that examines climate and climate change across the globe, with more than 400 authors from about 50 countries across the globe, and has served as the lead scientific consultant for the Statement on the Status of the Global Climate in 2013 report published by the United Nation’s World Meteorological Organization. Media includes: CBS National Radio, Associated Press, New York Times, USA Today.

South Asia Project Director

To discuss the recent terrorism attacks at Bacha Khan university in Pakistan, we FEATURE International Crisis Director Samina Ahmed. Ahmed oversees Crisis Group’s work in Pakistan, Afghanistan, India and Nepal. Together with their analysts throughout the region, she prepares reports on the political, social, economic and military factors that increase the risks of extremism, internal conflict and war, and she makes policy recommendations to overcome these threats. Media includes: Neue Zürcher Zeitung, News International, Boston Globe.

Israel Munson Professor of Physics and Astronomy

For insight into the new planet scientists are believed to have discovered, we FEATURE Physics and Astronomy professor Meg Urry. Urry's scientific research focuses on active galaxies, which host accreting supermassive black holes in their centers. She has published over 230 refereed research articles on supermassive black holes and galaxies and has been identified as a “Highly Cited Author” by Thomson Reuters. Prof. Urry is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Physical Society and American Women in Science; received an honorary doctorate from Tufts University; and was awarded the American Astronomical Society’s Annie Jump Cannon and George van Biesbroeck prizes. Media includes: CNN, ABC (Australia), The Conversation (UK).