Andrew Ayres is a research fellow at the PPIC Water Policy Center. He is an environmental and natural resource economist focused on questions related to the design, development, and effectiveness of legal and economic institutions for managing the environment. His work often involves applied economic modeling and econometric analysis. Previously, he worked in Germany and the United States on projects to inform policy-making related to topics such as climate change, energy, river restoration, and water pricing. He holds a PhD in economics and environmental science from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a BA in economics from Pomona College.

Keith Lilley is the deputy director of Los Angeles County Public Works water resources core service area. Keith is responsible for managing the Los Angeles County Flood Control District and the Los Angeles County Waterworks Districts. He also oversees the county’s Safe, Clean Water Program and stormwater quality compliance efforts within the county’s unincorporated areas. Keith has over 30 years of experience in developing and implementing programs and civil infrastructure projects to enhance the communities of Los Angeles County. Keith is a licensed civil engineer in the state of California. He received his bachelors of science degree in civil engineering from Louisiana State University and a certificate in engineering management for construction from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Jeffrey Mount is a senior fellow at the PPIC Water Policy Center. He is an emeritus professor of earth and planetary sciences and founding director of the Center for Watershed Sciences at the University of California, Davis. A geomorphologist who specializes in the study of rivers, streams, and wetlands, his research focuses on integrated water resource management, flood management, and improving aquatic ecosystem health. He has served on many state and federal boards and commissions that address water resource management issues in the West. He has published more than a hundred articles, books, and other publications, including the seminal book California Rivers and Streams (UC Press). He holds a PhD and MS in earth sciences from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Caitlin Peterson is associate director and research fellow at the PPIC Water Policy Center. She is an agroecologist whose research spans climate-smart agriculture, soil health, diversified cropping systems, agroecosystem resilience, and multi-benefit agricultural landscapes. In her previous work, she explored irrigation and soil ecosystem functions in California almond and tomato systems, crop-livestock integration in Brazilian soybean-beef systems, and small farmer adaptation to climate change in Colombia, Tanzania, and Ghana. As a consulting agroecologist, she led programs linking farmers across the US to emerging soil carbon marketplaces. She holds a PhD in ecology and an MS in international agricultural development from the University of California, Davis.

Tim was first appointed by Governor Brown in January 2012 to serve as a member of the Central Valley Flood Protection Board, and most recently reappointed by Governor Newsom in 2020. Since 2005, Tim has worked for the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission as the manager of the Natural Resources and Lands Management Division. Previously, Tim spent six years working as the assistant secretary for water policy and science at the California Resources Agency and as the senior policy advisor and deputy director for ecosystem restoration at the California Bay-Delta Authority. Tim’s responsibilities included serving as the state coordinator for the CALFED Bay-Delta Program, and he focused on river systems and the intersection of water supply, ecosystem restoration, water quality, flood protection, and agricultural issues. Tim earned an MS in civil and environmental engineering and an MA in urban planning from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Sarah Woolf runs Water Wise, a water management company for farmers in the central San Joaquin Valley and is a partner in Clark Bros., a farming operation and property investment company. Through Water Wise, Sarah works directly with farmers, groups of farmers, and water districts to adapt to water regulations. Between Sarah and her husband Chris, they participate in over 30,000 acres of farming operations, primarily in Westlands Water District and Fresno Irrigation District. Sarah and husband Chris have four children, Clark (20), Meg (19), George (18) & Robert (16). She earned a bachelor of science in agricultural business from California State University, Fresno.