Nadja Kunz is Assistant Professor and Canada Research Chair in Mine Water Management and Stewardship (NSERC, Tier 2), jointly appointed across the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs (SPPGA) and the Norman B Keevil Institute of Mining Engineering (NBK) at the University of British Columbia. The overarching goal of Nadja’s research program at UBC is to quantify and mitigate the risks associated with the mining sector’s use of water from the perspective of diverse actors including companies, investors, governments, Indigenous rights-holders and communities. Nadja adopts an interdisciplinary toolkit, ranging from the development of engineering and geospatial models to anticipate potential water-related risks, to qualitative field and interview research to identify the constraints and opportunities for transitioning the mining sector towards more sustainable water and waste management practices. Currently, she also leads the Water Stewardship Theme within UBC’s Bradshaw Research Initiative on Mining and Minerals (BRIMM), which convenes 16 faculty members and senior researchers from across 8 departments at UBC to resolve water challenges as they relate to the mining and extractives sector.

She obtained her PhD from the Sustainable Minerals Institute (SMI) at The University of Queensland, Australia where she remains an Adjunct Fellow.  She also spent two years as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Eawag Aquatic Research Institute in Switzerland. Nadja has a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering (First Class Honours) and a Bachelor of Business Management (Dean’s Honour Roll), both from the University of Queensland.

Her current research focuses on the mining and extractives sector at two geographical scales of analysis: (1) within the mine lease, and (2) within mining regions. At the mine site level, Nadja develops novel engineering models to improve quantification of water risk, and investigates organizational constraints to implementing optimal system-level solutions. At the regional level, Nadja studies the evolving role of the mining sector in water stewardship and governance. She is especially interested in how mining can best contribute towards the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG6 which focuses on the provision of water and sanitation.

In addition to her academic credentials, Nadja maintains close links to practice. Prior to joining UBC, she consulted as a Water Specialist for the International Finance Corporation where she has provided technical expertise to a Voluntary Code of Practice on Water Management for the South Gobi Region in Mongolia. Currently, she is supporting the development of online educational material for IFC’s Disclosure to Development program. Since 2021, Nadja is a board member of Genome British Columbia, and she was previously Chair and UBC Representative of the Academic Advisory Board for the Canadian International Resources and Development Institute (CIRDI) (2017-19). In her early career, Nadja gained extensive operational experience in the mining, oil and gas sector within Australia, including at the Northparkes copper/gold mine, Yarwun Alumina Refinery and BP’s Bulwer Island refinery. She has also worked in corporate sustainability reporting for Rio Tinto and consulted for Anglo Gold Ashanti in South Africa.

In her spare time, Nadja is an avid outdoor enthusiast and particularly enjoys rock-climbing, mountaineering and skiing.

Read all of Prof. Nadja Kunz’s publications here.