David Hassenzahl, Ph.D.

David M. Hassenzahl, PhD, Dean of the School of Sustainability and the Environment at Chatham University, is an internationally recognized scholar of sustainability and risk analysis. Dr. Hassenzahl has spent more than two decades addressing subjects as diverse as climate change, energy, toxic chemicals, and public health, and has presented on these topics on three continents. His research focuses on incorporating scientific information and expertise into public decisions, with particular emphasis on the management, interpretation, and communication of uncertainty. Among his many publications are Should We Risk It, co-authored with Daniel M. Kammen, and Environment, with Peter Raven and Linda Berg.

He holds a BA in Environmental Science and Paleontology from the University of California at Berkeley, and a PhD in Science, Technology and Public Policy from Princeton University. Dr. Hassenzahls efforts in climate change education have been supported by the Nation Science Foundation and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and recognition for his educational work includes the Society for Risk Analysis Outstanding Educator Award and the UNLV Foundation Distinguished Teaching Award. He is a Senior Fellow of the National Council for Science and the Environment, and serves on the Councils of the Society for Risk Analysis and the Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, which he helped to found. From 2000 2010, Dr. Hassenzahl was Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Department Chair in the Environmental Studies Program at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Prior to his academic career, Dr. Hassenzahl worked in the private sector as an environmental manager at a pulp and paper mill, and in the public sector as an inspector for the (San Francisco) Bay Area Air Quality Management District.