Elizabeth Lowham

Interim Dean, Graduate Education,
Professor

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About Elizabeth Lowham

I'm a Professor with interests in public policy, research methodology, environmental policy and leadership and collaboration.  I hail from Wyoming and majored in Geology with a concentration in Environmental and Technological Studies at Carleton College. 

I received my PhD and MA in Political Science from the University of Colorado, Boulder, where I worked as a fellow on the Carbon, Climate and Society Initiative.  This grant, sponsored by the NSF IGERT program, brought together groups of graduate students to learn not only about climate change, but also about how to do successful interdisciplinary work and training at the graduate level.  These years sparked my interest in collaboration and leadership.  My dissertation investigated leadership practices in voluntary cleanup programs at the state level.  In particular, I was interested in how different participants share leadership responsibilities in environmental cleanup and redevelopment.

My research now focuses on environmental policy, particularly instances of natural resource protection and development, as well as collaborative decision making processes.  I also work on sponsored projects in the evaluation of mental health innovation projects and cybersecurity.  My teaching varies from year to year.  I regularly teach classes on research design/methodology, theory of public policy, leadership and management, and research seminars.  When I am particularly lucky, I also teach Science Fiction and Politics, and Environmental Policy.